


I've Lost Who I Am

by BrokenSoulsIDevour



Category: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Angst with a Happy Ending, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, M/M, Yaoi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-07
Updated: 2018-06-07
Packaged: 2019-05-19 09:13:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 32,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14870954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrokenSoulsIDevour/pseuds/BrokenSoulsIDevour
Summary: After being hit with Solomon's Wisdom, Judar is left regaining memories long forgotten.





	1. We Are Lost and We're Falling

**Author's Note:**

> *Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character in this story, neither do I own the music lyrics which is used for the title of this story and it's chapters.
> 
> Warning: Out of character, manga spoilers and smut.  
> Please excuse any of the mistakes I may have missed whilst editing this.*

_"Big brother Kouen!!"_   


_"No! Give him back!"_

_"Quiet, boy. Such disobedience will not be tolerated,"_

_Red, tear filled eyes widened in fear, small body tense from where it had carelessly been tossed over the shoulder of a tall, broad man from Al-Thamen. Still, one small hand was stretched out to another man. Kouen had a frantic look on his face, body frozen for a mere moment._

_"You have to save him, brother!" Koumei encouraged, and it was all the eldest needed._  
_Kouen lurched forward, right hand reached out, ready to grab the pale, much smaller hand of his little brother._

_Five other members of Al-Thamen stepped in his way, preventing him from reaching the tiny boy, grab him and hug him to his chest, hide him in his big, strong arms, much like he had been doing for the past few weeks._  
_"No! Judar!!" Kouen yelled, struggling against the five men._

_"Judar!" Koumei ran forward, passed the five men who were able to hold his big brother down. Judar reached out to Koumei, their fingertips brushing before Koumei was lurched back, by another, sixth member of Al-Thamen grabbing him, holding him back as the last, seventh member carried Judar away._

_Kouen and Koumei continued to struggle, yelling for their little brother, screaming at the men to just give him back!_  
_"Enough! Don't make his punishment worse than it already will be. Should you carry on like this, he will be punished by death, no matter that he is a Magi," one of the men holding Kouen down warned._

_The words caused the two brothers to freeze, eyes widened as they slowly relented. The men stepped back, and in an orderly fashion, nearly as one, they turned to walk off after the other carrying Judar._

_Judar stilled at the sight of his two brothers giving up, body growing limp at the all too familiar scene. The memory of a city around him, different people surrounding him, but one in particular harboured all his attention._

_Judar had also been thrown over the shoulder of a member from Al-Thamen, back then. He had had tears in his eyes, looking expectantly at the man in front of him, waiting._  
_'He'll save me. I know he will,'_

_Tears fell down his cheeks as he watched the man turn his back on him, long, purple hair whipping around at the movement and wind. Judar watched, heartbroken as the man started to walk away from him, leaving him at the mercy of Al-Thamen._

_'Sinbad,'_

_The man carrying him put him down on his feet, intending to grab his wrist and drag him away. Judar wrenched his arm away, small hands clamping over his ears as the memory left him. Tears streaming down his cheeks, Judar started to scream at the top of his lungs, the Rukh around him started to flutter wildly, chirping frantically as they tried to calm the Magi._

_Kouen and Koumei watched with widened eyes as the Rukh started to become visible to them. They were such a beautiful, white, golden colour, until suddenly, some of them started to grow grey, the colour steadily spreading until all of the Rukh were grey, slowly turning darker and darker, until it was all black._

_Kouen grit his teeth, Koumei biting his lower lip to try and prevent himself from bursting into tears. The men from Al-Thamen watched, thoroughly pleased that they had been able to throw the young boy into depravity._

_Once Judar stopped screaming, eyes slowly opening, his hands fell limply at his sides. His lips were parted, eyes wide as tears continued to fall freely. The black Rukh fluttered around him, still chirping comforting words to him._

_Kouen watched in slight horror as Judar's lips pressed into a firm line, expression turning blank as the light left his red eyes. Kouen made a sound of disdain, silently cursing Al-Thamen as they surrounded the Magi, gently leading the boy away._

 

* * *

 

 

It was warm, the sun beating down on his pale skin. Lidded, red eyes stared up at the white, fluffy clouds floating in the sky, carefree. Judar envied them, longing to be as free as those clouds.

He was stretched out on a thick branch of a tree in the Kou empire's gardens. A deep sigh passed his lips as he started to frown. As of late, he had been plagued by memories from his childhood. Ever since that baby Magi, Aladdin, had used that strange power on him.

He sometimes dreamt of those forgotten moments, but it hit him in the day, too. Any little thing could set off a memory, and he was left standing there, staring into the distance like a moron.

It was strange, remembering all of these long forgotten things that stirred emotions in him that he would rather not deal with. Voices caught his attention, the Ren siblings walking into the garden, talking amongst themselves.

Hakuei and Hakuryuu were there, too. They mumbled to themselves, until suddenly, Hakuei spoke up.  
"Can't Judar do anything?" She asked, sounding almost urgent.  
Interest slightly peaked, Judar listened more intently.

"Doesn't he have better things to do?" Kouha asked, sounding disinterested.  
"Judar is far too lazy to have better things to do, Kouha," Koumei said, almost sounding as though he were scolding the younger.

Kouha sighed, rolling his eyes as he waved one hand, brushing his brother's words off.  
"Does Judar-chan even know how to use healing magic?" Kougyoku asked curiously.

Judar sighed once more, rolling off of the tree, floating until his feet touched the ground.  
"I'm no good at healing magic," he stated as he walked towards them.  
Both Kougyoku and Kouha whipped around to face him, both gaining cheerful expressions at his arrival.

"Judar!" They yelled simultaneously.  
Kouen frowned at the Magi, who seemed a little dishevelled. Hakuryuu frowned, too, not at all happy to see the Magi, who would no doubt start pestering him about concurring a dungeon. Hakuei smiled, Koumei only watching with his usual blank expression.

Judar watched with lidded eyes as both Kougyoku and Kouha rushed to him, the younger male wrapping both of his arms around Judar's left arm, hugging it to his chest as he grinned up at the Magi.

Kougyoku showed more restraint, though she still smiled happily up at him.  
"Why were you asking about that?" He asked, barely sparing a glance at the younger two before his attention was on Kouen.

"Sadly, our father has grown terribly ill, and we were wondering if you could heal him?" Kougyoku asked, looking up at him with hopeful eyes.  
Hope he was about to crush, that is.  
"Heh, sorry, but as I said before, I'm no good," Judar stated.

Kougyoku's shoulders slumped, eyes glistening with held back tears. Almost instantly, Judar felt guilty. Sighing softly, he placed a hand on her head, parting his lips to offer himself for her today, wanting to suggest they go to the markets, like they used to when she was much younger.

"Enough about that. Hey, Judar, can I braid your hair?" Kouha asked.  
"What?" Judar asked, turning his head to give the teen a strange look.  
Kouha beamed up at him. "Yeah! You know, like when we were younger! Oh! I can decorate it again with flowers like the last time!"

Judar opened his mouth to refuse, noticing Kougyoku's interested look, eyes shining, and suddenly, he was hit with a barrage of different memories. The family watched as a distant look entered their Magi's eyes, mouth hanging open, only to slowly click shut.

"Judar-chan?" Kougyoku asked curiously.  
"Hey! Judar!" Kouha called in annoyance, tugging at the pale man's arm. "What's wrong with him?" Kouha asked with a huff.

Koumei raised a brow in interest, Kouen frowning.  
Hakuryuu sighed. "Looks like our dear Magi has finally lost his mind completely," he mumbled, ignoring the disapproving look he received from his sister.

 

* * *

 

 

_"Big brother Judar? Will you let me braid your hair?" A fourteen year old Kouha asked, staring with eager eyes at the Magi from across the room._  
_"No," Judar answered grumpily, he was in a rather foul mood that day._

_Kouha pouted. "But I always let you braid mine whenever you want! And your hair is so pretty! I promise I won't hurt you! I know! You can teach me how to make that crown of flowers you put in my hair last time! I'll decorate your hair nicely, I promise! Please!" He pleaded._

_Judar ignored him, gritting his teeth as the younger proceeded to repeat the word 'please'._  
_"Okay, fine!" Judar snapped, standing and walking moodily out of the room and down to the garden, teeth gritted as Kouha cheered behind him._

_Judar slumped to the ground, crossing his arms. "Get some flowers," he ordered._  
_Kouha skipped around the garden, laughing and humming to himself as he gathered flowers._

_Once done, he dumped an arm full of different coloured flowers in front of Judar, plopping down on the ground, seeming eager. Judar sighed, pained. Slowly, he gathered flowers as he needed them, braiding them in a particular way, doing so slowly so that Kouha could clearly see what he was doing._

_Once he was done, he smiled a soft smile, reaching forward and gently settling it onto the youngers head._  
_"Now you try," he encouraged._  
_Kouha did so eagerly, brows furrowed in concentration as he clumsily made his first flower crown, with Judar occasionally helping him along the way._

_Kouha cheered once he was done, laughing as he held it in both his hands, falling onto his back while kicking his legs. Judar smiled at the sight, Kouha rarely acted his age._

_Still smiling, Judar took a hold of his braid, gently undoing it. Kouha looked up, scrambling to his feet._  
_"I'll help, big brother," he said._  
_Judar allowed the younger to pull his hair back over his shoulder as he settled behind him, fingers gently working through the long hair._

_"You have really pretty hair, Judar. It's so thick and soft!" He praised, watching as Judar's hair fell around his shoulders, back and pooled onto the ground._

_Kouha ran his fingers through the long strands a few times, before taking a good handful and burying his face into it, taking deep breaths. Judar turned and gave him a strange look._  
_"You're really weird, Kouha," he stated._

_Kouha laughed, launching forward, wrapping his arms around Judar's neck, propping his chin up on the elder's shoulder, hugging him from behind. Judar sighed, allowing the embrace, enjoying it for a while._

_Eventually, Kouha pulled away and started to braid Judar's hair, fingers gentle. Once he was done with that, he started decorating Judar's hair with flowers, lastly placing the flower crown on top of his head._

_"You look so pretty, Judar!" He complimented._  
_A light shade of red dusted his pale cheeks at the compliment._  
_Kouha laughed, playing with the end of Judar's braid for a while as they sat in silence._

_A while later, a gasp was heard as well as a feminine voice calling Judar's name._  
_"Judar!" Kougyoku's voice reached them._  
_The magi watched as a very young Kougyoku came running at them, ignoring Ka Koubun's calls for her to calm down._

_Kougyoku giggled as she came to a stop in front of the two, smiling happily at them, until a curious look crossed her features._  
_"Why do you have so many flowers in your hair? You look so pretty, like a girl!" She stated._

_Judar blushed as Kouha started laughing hysterically. A mischievous look entered her eyes next._  
_"Can I ask a favour of you, Judar-chan?" She asked._  
_The new nickname served only to make Kouha laugh even harder and caused Judar's eye to twitch._

_"What is it?" He asked through gritted teeth._  
_"Will you please go to the market with me? Ka Koubun doesn't want me to go, and big brother's Kouen and Koumei are too busy to take me," she said, sounding sad._

_Judar hated it when she was sad. With a defeated sigh, Judar rolled his eyes._  
_"Fine, just let me-" he was cut off as she grabbed his hand, using all her might to pull him forward and somehow onto his feet, dragging him out of the gardens and the palace._

_"Wait! I can't go out like this!" He yelled, but by the time the words left his lips, they were already outside the palace._  
_Judar sighed, allowing the girl to drag him everywhere, ignoring the stares he got from the commoners._

_Kougyoku dragged him to all kinds of different stalls, trying different foods, eyes twinkling at the different jewelry. By the time the sun had set, Judar was beyond exhausted._

_He had little doubt that they would still be running around the streets had Judar not floated them up onto a rooftop to watch the sunset. Sitting still had proved to be the right thing, as the young girl fell asleep on his lap not too long after._

_Judar sighed once more, picking the girl up, gently floating to the ground as she snuggled her face into his neck, arms moving to loosely hang around his neck. Judar carried her back to the palace, gaze mostly on the stars._

_Kouen was pacing by the palace doors, head snapping up at hearing footsteps approaching. A sigh of relief left his lips, unseen by anyone but Judar, someone who knew Kouen for a long time._

_"There you two are," Kouen said, walking to meet Judar halfway. "We were starting to get worried," he stated, looking down at Kougyoku._  
_A rare, soft smile danced across his lips as he raised his hand to gently run it through the girls hair._

_Slowly, Kougyoku's eyes fluttered open, smiling sleepily at the sight of her eldest brother. Stretching, she raised her arms in order to be taken by Kouen. With one hand supporting the young child's entire weight as she seemed to sit on his arm, Kougyoku wrapped her arms around Kouen's neck, cheek pressing into his shoulder._

_Raising her head again, she turned to look at the Magi._  
_"Thank you for everything, Judar-chan," she said before closing her eyes and promptly falling asleep._  
_Kouen stilled, raising a brow as he turned to look Judar over._

_Smiling another soft smile, Kouen spread his free arm open. "Come inside, you must be tired after today, Judar-chan," he teased._  
_Instantly, a scowl settled onto the Magi's face, causing Kouen to throw his head back, eyes closed as he laughed in amusement._

_Judar had honestly forgotten that his hair was still decorated with flowers, and now it seemed that this new nickname was going to stick._  
_"Come, Judar-chan, I'll help you get those flowers out of your hair and re-braid it," Kouen teased once more, though there was a certain warmth to him._

_Judar smiled almost shyly as he walked forward and into his brother's awaiting arm. Kouen wrapped his arm around his shoulders, gently leading him inside. After Kouen put Kougyoku to bed, he kept his promise and helped Judar rid his hair of the many flowers Kouha had used._

_He then spent a while gently brushing through it, running his fingers through the soft strands before he braided it. Once done, he bid the Magi a good night, with a gentle kiss to the forehead that caught the younger completely off guard._

_Kouen smiled at him once more before he left the room, gently closing the door behind him. Judar fell asleep that night, with a bright smile on his lips and a certain happiness in his heart, knowing that Kouen only showed this sort of softness to his family, and he was one of them._

 

* * *

 

 

"-ar? Judar? Judar!!" Someone shouted, roughly shaking his shoulder.  
Judar blinked, feeling confused as to why everyone was looking at him as if he were crazy, and why was Kouen's hand on his forehead?

"Are you feeling unwell?" Kouen asked, a small twinge of worry in his voice.  
Judar was instantly annoyed at the way his heart fluttered at the sound.

"...Yeah," he finally answered, not really listening to what the question was.  
Kouen frowned deeply, slowly leaning forward and pressing his forehead to Judar's. Kouen's frown deepened as he pulled away.

Judar blinked a few times in confusion.  
"You don't feel like you have a fever, is something in particular bothering you?" Kouen asked.

"What?" Judar asked dumbly.  
"Ugh, stop babying him, Kouen!! Anyway, can I Judar?" Kouha asked again.  
"He said he was feeling ill, our Magi can't be allowed to be ill," Kouen retorted.

"Was something bothering you, Judar-chan?" Kougyoku asked with concern.  
"Oh, no, I was just remembering a really...fond memory," Judar said softly, a fond smile on his lips.  
It was quiet for a moment.  
"Judar," Kouha whined, tugging on his arm.  
Judar looked down at him. "What?"

Kouha made a sound of frustration. "Can I braid your hair?" He asked in annoyance. "Please?" He added, sounding a bit more sincere.  
"Oh, sure," Judar answered.  
Kouha made a sound of surprise before he cheered.

Kougyoku pouted, crossing her arms as Kouen's eyebrows rose in surprise. Hakuei merely smiled as her little brother frowned. Koumei had a surprised look, too.  
"That's no fair, I want to play with Judar-chan's hair, too!" Kougyoku said.

Kouha laughed. "No way, I asked first!"  
Kougyoku made a sound of frustration, looking as though she wanted to stomp her foot.  
A small smile tugged at Judar's lips. "I have enough hair for the both of you. Let's go find some shade," he said, turning around and walking away.

The two younger siblings followed after the Magi, arguing about what they were going to do with all that hair. Judar plopped down on the grass underneath a tree, undoing his braid as he watched the other two gather flowers.

In the end, the two tried multiple different styles before settling for one. It ranged from two separate braids that hung over his shoulders and onto his chest, but that one wasn't to their taste, as it made Judar seem far too girly.

It went from one, giant bun on top of his head, to two, to different types of ponytails until they decided a braid fit Judar best. They tried different types of braids as well, until they finally settled on one they both like.

By that time, Judar was positively battling not to fall asleep. After they decorated his hair with flowers, the two leaned their heads on his shoulders, just enjoying the peace and quiet.

"I'm going to Sindria," Kougyoku stated abruptly.  
"Why?" Judar asked, sounding rather rude.  
"Hakuryuu is going there to study, and I asked if I could go with him, something like a chaperone" she said, sounding far too happy.

"That's great for you," Judar said, sounding almost too sarcastic.  
Kougyoku turned her head on his shoulder to look up at him.  
"Is there any particular reason why you don't like Sinbad and his country?" She asked curiously.

Kouha looked up at his face in interest. Judar took a long time to answer, a series of images popping up in his mind, as well as a short memory.

_"Is there any particular reason why you don't like people touching your hair?" A sixteen year old Sinbad asked curiously._  
_Judar looked at him, before his eyes were cast downward, hands holding his hair down the left side of his chest, out of Sinbad's reach._

_"You're going to think it's stupid." He pouted._  
_Sinbad chuckled, moving to touch the child's hair again, stopping when Judar moved his body away, still pouting._  
_Sinbad smiled gently. "I promise I won't think it's stupid and I won't laugh," he assured._

_Judar peeked at him, still pouting._  
_"It's-" he cut himself off for a moment, hesitating and wondering if he should continue. "It's the only thing I like about myself," he said quietly._  
_Sinbad's eyes widened, eyes turning sad._

_He smiled warmly as Judar turned to look at him expectantly._  
_"Then I promise I'll be gentle," he stated, reaching forward again._  
_Judar hesitated before letting his hair go, allowing it to flow down his back and over his right shoulder, right into Sinbad's awaiting hand._  
_"I promise I'll take care of it," he said, running his fingers though the long strands._

Judar released a shaky sigh, biting his lower lip before he answered.  
"Sinbad and I have a long history, something I don't want to talk about, really," he stated.  
Luckily, the two let it go.

They spent most of the day like that, eventually falling asleep. It was nice, having company, even if they didn't necessarily speak, it was nice to have someone's presence there.

 

* * *

 

 

Judar had to force himself to calm down, to control not only his emotions, but the tears that were freely running down his cheeks now. This was all meant to be fake, a ruse to get Sinbad to feel sorry for him, but it all quickly backfired when the emotions grew too strong and the tears became real.

He had crouched on the ground, pressing his face into his hands as he continued to cry, not wanting any of them to see his face when he cried real tears, and not fake ones. Once he had gotten a grip on his emotions, he looked up at Sinbad, wiping them all away as he taunted him.

He was calm, until the older man mentioned what happened in Parthevia, what he did to them. Suddenly, it was almost impossible for him to control his emotions. He didn't do anything to them in Parthevia, it was them! It was Sinbad!

He had abandoned Judar! It was that bitch, Serendine. All of what had happened was her fault!  
Suddenly, all he wanted to do was scream, shout, yell that what happened there wasn't his fault, but he didn't do any of that. Instead, he acted arrogantly, and declared war.

After that, he left, flying back home with so many mixed emotions, he could barely breathe. At least Kouen didn't seem angry at all at what he had done. The moment he walked into his room, he could feel the dull ache in his head grow in intensity, until they came in short, painful bursts.

Judar cried out, clutching at his head as he collapsed to the ground, curling in on himself as images popped up in his mind. His body shook ferociously. A tall woman with blue hair and kind eyes, a gentle smile in place, appeared in his mind.

Many other familiar faces appeared in his mind, but he could not place a name with the face, and as soon as it was remembered, he forgot again, except for that one woman. She had been something like a mother to everyone back then.

Why couldn't he remember her name? Why couldn't he remember any other memories of her except for her face. But the biggest question of all, was why the memory of her caused him to burst into tears, heart aching so much he could barely breathe.

Judar cried himself to sleep, curled up a small ways away from his bedroom door, curled in on himself, arms hugging his middle in an effort to comfort. It was in this position that Kouen found him.

The elder blinked in surprise at the familiar, yet unfamiliar scene. It had been years, years, since he first caught Judar in a similar position, when he was much, much younger.

Kouen frowned, sighing as he walked into the room, bending down to gently scoop the younger up into his arms, gaze saddening at the dried tears on his Magi's cheeks.

Gently, he placed the Magi on the bed, carefully pulling the covers from the bed and tucking the younger in. Kouen stood up straight, gazing down at the sleeping youth, before reaching forward and running his fingers through Judar's short hair.

Why had the other been crying? Did it have something to do with the Magi's most recent visit to Sindria? What had Sinbad done? Knowing Judar, and also knowing all of the reasons why the Magi had cried in the past, it most likely had something to do with the King of Sindria.

Kouen sighed again, it was no use pondering about something Judar would never talk to him about. Not as he is now. Ever since Judar was taken away from Sinbad when he was younger, he hadn't been the same.

He was a lot more emotional, tended to cry far easier than he used to. He had spent a lot of time in Kouen's arms, never wanting to leave the elder's side for longer than absolutely necessary. Until Al-Tharmen came and ripped him from Kouen's arms.

Since that moment, when his Magi's Rukh had turned black, Judar had started to become ruthless, cold, and what disturbed Kouen the most, was how forgetful the Magi was. He tended to forget the simplest things, sometimes he forgets what he had done the previous day. It seemed that everyday, it just grew worse, and worse.

Kouen shook his head, turned, and left the room, closing the door softly behind him. Nothing like that mattered, for now. Kouen had little doubt that Al-Thamen was the reason behind his Magi's forgetfulness, but until he had all the answers he needed, he couldn't do anything.

They just had to endure, Judar just had to endure a little bit longer. He would never forgive himself if he lost the Magi, forever. Whether it be by death, or by the fact that Judar was forgetting things at such a rate, it wouldn't be long before he was turned into a mindless puppet. He refused to let the other go.

 

 

* * *

 

 

_"Big brother Kouen?" A six year old Judar asked sleepily, rubbing at his eyes as he was picked up out of bed._  
_"Shh, be quiet, Judar," Kouen instructed, voice nothing but a quiet whisper._

_Judar frowned, blinking multiple times to look at his big brother's dark figure, searching through his clothes._  
_"Why don't you just light a candle?" Judar asked curiously, standing on the cold floor, a shiver crawled up his spine._

_Kouen glanced at Judar, noticing him shiver. Quickly, he picked out some warm clothes, before he moved to kneel in front of the smaller, gently helping him get dressed._  
_"I'm sending you away," he informed._

_Judar's head snapped up, panic, fear and heartache clear in his red eyes as tears started to gather. "Why? Did I do something wrong? Please, don't send me away, whatever I did, I'm sorry, I won't-"_  
_"Judar," Kouen cut off the child's frantic talking._

_He finished by wrapping the child in a warm jacket that belonged to Kouen. It was ridiculously large on the boy, but he knew it would serve as comfort for him. "I don't want to do this, but I have to. Al-Thamen's influence on you is growing stronger by the day,"_

_"They'll force you into depravity, and turn you into a dark Magi, but I don't want that for you," he explained as he gently wiped the Magi's tears away. "I want you to be happy, and to have a relatively normal life. And, I don't want them hurting you anymore,"_

_Judar's lower lip started to tremble as he rubbed at his eyes._  
_"You'll be strong for your big brother, won't you?" Kouen asked, watching the small child._  
_The magi nodded, as he rubbed away more tears, sniffling and hiccupping._

_"I'm putting you on a boat that will sail all the way to Reim. There's a man there that recently started a company, Sindria Trading Company, perhaps you've heard of it?" Kouen asked, watching as Judar nodded. "I've heard that he's a kind man, I'm sure he will take you in and protect you,"_

_"I don't want to go!" Judar cried, still rubbing at his eyes in vain to stop the tears from falling._  
_Kouen smiled sadly, pulling the tiny boy into his arms for a hug. "I know, and I don't really want to send you away, but I have little other options, and keeping you here is not good."_

_He pulled back, hands placed firmly on the sobbing boy's shoulders, choosing to ignore how his small body shook. "Sending you to Reim is the best, and I think only, option we have." He smiled warmly at Judar._

_He gave the small boy a few more minutes to gather himself before he picked him up as well as the bag of things he had packed for him. He somehow managed to sneak out of the palace and Empire undetected._

_As he walked to the port where he would give Judar to a kind lady who had agreed to keep an eye on the Magi while they travelled, he gave the boy a description of what Sinbad looked like as well as some other things. Telling him that he should send them letters, but under a false name that they already decided._

_Judar clung to him, tears streaming down his cheeks when it was time for him to board the ship, refusing to let go. He cried loudly, screamed and kicked his feet as the woman pulled him off, somehow managing to get herself, the struggling boy and their luggage on the ship._

_Judar sobbed and screamed as the ship started to move, wanting to go back to the comforting arms of his big brother. Kouen stood there, smiling warmly as he waved, trying to seem brave for his little brother, and only when he was sure the ship was too far away for any of it's passengers to see anything, did he let his own tears fall._

_Judar managed to eventually calm down slightly, his fierce grip now on the woman that first took him. He continued to sob into her chest, and he was well aware of how unlike it was of him to cry so much, but he couldn't help it. He was only just a child, and he was scared, no matter that he's Magi._

_The woman started to hum a song as she gently combed her fingers through his hair, calming him. Eventually, Judar fell into a deep sleep, cheeks stained red from the overly large sleeves of Kouen's jacket constantly being rubbed against his fair skin._

_His eyes were bloodshot and burned whenever he opened them, though he mostly kept them shut. The woman commented that he was paler than what seemed natural, and feared he might be getting sick, though he soon fell asleep, much to her relief._

_The woman smiled down at the boy that was sat in her lap, arms wrapped around her neck as he slept. Lord Kouen had asked her to please help the child to find Sinbad, the head of The Sindria Trading Company, and even offered to pay her to take him there, but she had declined. She was an employee at the company, after all._

_She had never seen someone look so relieved as that man did when he heard the news. She had only come to Kou to visit family, but was now returning, and along with her, she brought a new edition to the Sindria Company family._

_Judar slept through the rest of the trip, only waking when he heard unfamiliar voices close to him._  
_"Who's the kid?" A young male voice asked._  
_"This is little Judar. His big brother sent him here in order to protect him," the woman stated._

_"Here, let me take your bags. Or would you rather I take him?" Another male asked, though he sounded much closer._  
_"I'm not sure if he'd want to come to you, he put up a real fuss when I had to take him from his brother," the woman said, though she sounded sad._

_"You had to take him?" The male asked._  
_Judar felt curious to know what this person looked like, and as the woman carrying him started to explain why she had taken him, Judar slowly, shyly turned his head to look at the man._

_The man was rather tall, and stood right in front of them, listening intently to the woman. He had long, purple hair, and kind, golden eyes. Just like the description his brother gave him. The man suddenly looked down at him, a kind smile stretching over his lips once he noticed the younger looking at him._

_"Oh, hello there, little guy, you're awake," he greeted._  
_Judar seemed to shrink back into the woman a little._  
_The man seemed surprised at the action, though he continued to smile kindly. "Your name is Judar, right? Do you want to come here to me?" He asked, gently opening his arms in order to receive the child._

_Judar hesitated._  
_"Judar," the woman holding him spoke up. "This is Sinbad, the man your brother sent you to," she introduced._  
_Judar looked back to the man, Sinbad, who smiled a little wider at receiving the boy's attention once more._

_Hesitating, Judar held his arms out to the man. Sinbad grinned widely as he stepped closer and took Judar into his arms, smiling softly at the boy as he wrapped his small arms around the taller male's neck._  
_"Look at you, aren't you just a cutie?" Sinbad spoke as he started to walk._

_Judar blushed a little, sniffling softly as he raised one of the jacket sleeves to rub at his still red eyes. Sinbad observed the movement, frowning briefly at the sight of the child's red eyes and cheeks, unnaturally pale skin, before a smile tugged back onto his lips._

_"Just look at you in this oversized jacket, you're adorable," Sinbad stated, chuckling as the child blushed a deeper shade of red._  
_He was mostly trying to make the boy feel more comfortable, but the more he looked at the tiny raven, the truer his words got._

_"It was my big brother's," Judar spoke for the first time._  
_"It must be comfortable then, right?" Sinbad asked as he started to climb up the stairs to his company._  
_Judar nodded as he yawned, tightening his grip on Sinbad as he moved to lie his head on the man's shoulder._

_"Tired? Ethel tells me you slept through most of your trip here," Sinbad spoke._  
_Judar yawned again, assuming Sinbad was speaking of the woman who brought him here. " 'M still tired," he mumbled as he rubbed at one of his eyes with a small fist._

_Sinbad just wanted to coo at the sight. "Alright, but how about we get you something to eat first? You must be hungry, and I'm guessing that's probably the reason why you're so pale," he suggested._  
_"Okay," Judar agreed, though he snuggled his face into Sinbad's neck._

_The child ignored the ruckus around them as people spoke loudly, and cheerfully. He trusted that Sinbad wouldn't let him get hurt or let anyone hurt him._  
_"Hey Sinbad! Who's the kid?" A booming voice called._

_"Hinahoho!" Sinbad greeted. "This is Judar, Ethel brought him with her back from Kou, said his brother practically begged her to bring him here," Sinbad stated._  
_"Oh, poor little guy. Jeez, isn't he a little small? I mean, he's tiny," the man stated._

_"Normally I'd say you probably think that because you're so big, but you're right, he is really small," Sinbad said, turning his head to try and look at Judar's face. "You want to say hello to Hinahoho for me?" He asked softly._

_Reluctantly, Judar raised his head to look at the newcomer, eyes widening at the sight of the massive man in front of him._  
_Hinahoho smiled widely at him. "Hey there, kiddo," he greeted._

_Judar wasn't sure if he should scream and hide, or smile and climb all over the ridiculously huge man in front of him. He settled for smiling, giggling a little as he reached out to the man. Hinahoho seemed surprised, but still held out his arms for him._

_Sinbad reluctantly let go of Judar, but smiled when he saw the child laughing as Hinahoho moved him to sit on his neck. Announcing that he would go get Judar food, he disappeared._

_Judar laughed joyously as Hinahoho started to walk, the man chuckled as Judar seemed to enjoy himself. It was so high up, and it gave him comfort being up so high. He did, however, keep glancing around for Sinbad._

_Eventually, Hinahoho sat him down at a table as Sinbad brought him a plate of food. Judar thanked Sinbad for the food, remembering his manners as Kouen had reminded him, and slowly ate. Sinbad moved to go and talk to another kid that was there._

_Judar tried forcing as much of the food down as he could, though it was all too much for him, even if he only ate about half of the food._  
_"You can do better than that, can't you?" A soft, female voice asked._

_Judar turned his head to look at the woman, lips parting as he caught sight of her. She had long blue hair, a kind look on her face and in her eyes as she smiled warmly at him. What shocked him, though, was that she was even taller than Hinahoho._

_"But I'm full," Judar said mournfully._  
_"I think you can get in a few more bites, you're far too small," she stated._  
_Judar nodded as he started to eat again, forcing himself to eat more, to the point where he nearly wanted to vomit, but the woman seemed extremely happy at his achievement._

_"Wonderful. My name is Rurumu, and I'm the wife of Hinahoho. I'm sort of like a mother to everyone here," she said softly, smiling at the sight of Judar trying not to fall asleep._  
_"Really?" He asked, turning to look up at her._

_"Are you tired, Judar?" She asked._  
_Judar nodded as he yawned, tiny fist rubbing at one of his eyes. Across the room, Sinbad cooed, moving to hold the child once more._  
_"Let's find a place for you to sleep," Rurumu said, about to get up when Sinbad appeared._

_"C'mere, you," Sinbad said, reaching forward to take Judar._  
_The child stood up on the chair he was sat in and allowed Sinbad to pick him up, wrapping his arms around his neck, burying his face into Sinbad's neck. He fell asleep almost instantly._

_"Isn't he just the cutest?" Sinbad asked Rurumu._  
_The woman smiled at Sinbad, nodding._  
_"He's barely been here five minutes and already you're attached," Ja'far spoke up._

_Sinbad turned to him, smiling. "But just look at him! He's the picture of cuteness and innocence!" Sinbad exclaimed._  
_Ja'far merely sighed as Hinahoho laughed. Sinbad smiled and walked away to his office, where he sat down in his chair and merely watched the child sleep._

 

* * *

 

 

Talking to Alibaba was nice, Kougyoku decided. He was truly a friendly person, and, dare she say it, her only friend. As she sat on the grass, braiding flowers together to create a flower crown that he taught her to make, she listened intently as he told her his story.

No matter what, she thought determinedly, she would try her best to make not only Kouen, but Judar, too, see and realize what a beautiful country Sindria is, and that it really wasn't worth it to get into war with this country.

She admitted to Alibaba that Sinbad was her first love, and that she knew he would never take her seriously, and yet, she couldn't help her affections towards him. Tears started to fall as she admitted to being a fool.

Alibaba seemed to panic, flailing around a little as he dug out a handkerchief. She took it gratefully, wiping her tears away. She started to tell Alibaba her own story, about her mother being rumoured to have been a prostitute, that she was a princess of low birth.

She admitted that she never felt like she belonged in the palace, but the ones who helped her realize her place as a warrior, were Judar-chan and her elder brother, Kouen.

After a small while, she declared that Alibaba must be her best friend, smiling as the man seemed to freak out a little. They sat in silence for a while longer, enjoying the peace, until Alibaba broke the silence.

"So, you and Judar are really...close, huh?" He asked, sounding a little awkward.  
Kougyoku took a moment to finish her flower crown before she rested it in her lap, a fond smile on her lips, both of them unaware of the Sindrian King pausing and hiding behind a pillar, fully prepared to eavesdrop.

"I suppose, in a way, Judar was my first friend, but," she trailed off.  
"But?" Alibaba pressed, curiosity peeked.  
"He's more like my brother, really. He was always kind and patient with me, fully prepared to keep up with me when I was younger. I always dragged him off to the marketplace to try different food and ogle the goods they sold," she said, chuckling a little

"I see," Alibaba said softly, looking down at the grass beneath him.  
"It's because I know him so well that I could see right through his farce earlier," she stated.

"What do you mean?" He asked, looking up at her.  
"Surely you've heard what happened while you and your friends were in Zagan's dungeon? How Judar arrived here?" She asked, glancing at him, turning to look at the grass once he nodded. "That's how I know that his tears had been real,"

A look of pure shock and surprise crossed his features, jaw dropping.  
"What?" He breathed, shocked.  
Kougyoku nodded. "Big brother Kouen says that he used to find Judar-chan passed out on his bedroom floor with tears on his cheeks when he was younger, when Al-Thamen brought him back from Parthevia,"

"Wait, but why was Judar in Parthevia?" Alibaba asked, confused.  
Sinbad frowned, glancing from behind the pillar to look at the two.  
"Sin, what are you doing?" Ja'far asked suddenly to his side.

Sinbad jumped, moving to slap a hand over Ja'far's mouth, free hand moving to place his index finger on his own lips.  
"Shh!" He ordered, turning to look back at the two on the grass.  
Ja'far frowned, sighing as he pushed Sinbad's hand from his mouth, choosing instead to listen as well.

"Apparently, a few years ago when Judar was about six years old, Kouen sent him to Reim to live with Sinbad in order for him to be protected. I'm not entirely sure how they ended up in Parthevia or what exactly happened, but Kouen says Al-Thamen took Judar from Sinbad,"

"He said that ever since Judar got back from Parthevia, he used to cry a lot, and just wasn't the same. Kouen once said that Sinbad is half to blame for Judar's Rukh turning black," Kougyoku explained, staring sadly at the flower crown in her lap.

"That's...terrible," Alibaba said, looking awkwardly at his hands clasped in his lap.  
Kougyoku laughed lightly, looking up sharply, eyes twinkling. "You might not think it, but Judar is really a nice person, and at times, he can get pretty shy,"

Alibaba laughed, sounding a little disbelieving. "I have a hard time believing that,"  
"At first glance he doesn't seem the type, but he's really cute when he's flustered," Kougyoku stated.

Sinbad frowned, gaze turning to stare at the ground sadly.  
"Perhaps, whenever you see him next, you should try to read him, he's really easy to read, like I said. You just need to know where to look," she pointed out, smiling hopefully at her new friend.  
"Yeah, I'll definitely try it,"

 

* * *

 

 

_Judar felt useless. Everyone in the company had something to do, except for him. He was too young to do anything. Sinbad told him that him smiling and staying cute for now was enough until he got older._

_So it was only natural that when he heard a small group would be travelling to two small countries in order to do trade, he insisted they allow him to come along._

_"No, Judar. We need you to stay here, it's not safe for you," Sinbad insisted._  
_Judar pouted, crossing his arms over his chest._  
_"Sin is right, it's best if you stay here with everyone else, brighten them up with your smile," Hinahoho stated, smiling._

_"It's not fair, you guys don't let me do anything," Judar said, sounding as though he were whining._  
_Ja'far sighed in annoyance. "You're not coming, end of discussion. We'll be late if we don't go now,"_

_Sinbad smiled sympathetically as he waved, turning and jogging to keep up with Ja'far. Hinahoho said goodbye one last time to his wife and child until he followed, as well, easily catching up with the other two._

_Judar's hair fell into his eyes, casting a dark shadow as the Rukh around him fluttered wildly. Just a few were grey at this point, though majority of it was still pure white. The Rukh whispered to him, insisting he go along and that he needed to prove he wasn't going to be some useless tag along._

_Reaching into his shirt, Judar pulled his wand out, gently ordering his Rukh to gather. Sinbad's laugh was cut off as a strange sound reached their ears. It almost sounded like lightening hitting the ground directly behind them._

_Turning, the three were surprised to see the youngest holding a wand in his hands, a golden glow reflecting off of it. Sinbad jumped back as Judar shot off more Magoi, the attack barley missing hitting Sinbad's feet._

_"I'm going with you," he insisted._  
_Sinbad took a moment to stare at him before he grinned and shrugged. "Alright then," he said, gesturing the child over to them._

_Ja'far seemed less than happy, but kept his mouth shut as the small child ran up to them, taking the hand Sinbad was offering, and walking alongside the man._

_Sailing sucked, really, especially when Ja'far saw it fit to try and force useless knowledge into his brain. And for once, he was glad to have a moment alone. He was below deck in one of the rooms, first playing with the ends of his braid, before he started to free his hair._

_Once free, he picked up a brush and gently started to brush through the long strands, enjoying the relative silence he had down there._  
_"Wow, your hair is even longer when it's free," Sinbad's voice flowed into the room._

_Judar jumped a little at the sudden sound of his voice, turning sharply to face the man who was leaning against the wall by the door. Sinbad smiled at him, watching as Judar turned his head to look at the ground as he slowly continued to brush his hair._

_He gathered all the strands to fall over his left shoulder where he was able to brush through everything easier. Sinbad crossed the room, taking a seat next to Judar, reaching over take the boys hair. "Here, I'll help you,"_

_Judar pulled away from him almost violently, shrinking in on himself. Sinbad's hand slowly started to lower, a surprised look on his face._  
_"I don't like anyone touching my hair," Judar mumbled._

_"Is there any particular reason why you don't like people touching your hair?" Sinbad asked curiously._  
_Judar glanced at him, before his eyes were cast downward again, hands holding his hair down the left side of his chest, out of Sinbad's reach._

_"You're going to think it's stupid." Judar pouted._  
_Sinbad chuckled, moving to touch the child's hair again, stopping when Judar moved his body further away, still pouting._  
_Sinbad smiled gently. "I promise I won't think it's stupid and I won't laugh either," he promised, briefly raising his hands to show he meant no harm._

_Judar peeked at him, still pouting._  
_"It's-" he cut himself off for a moment, hesitating and wondering if he should continue. "It's the only thing I like about myself," he said quietly._  
_Sinbad's eyes widened, eyes turning sad._

_He smiled warmly as Judar turned to look at him expectantly._  
_"Then I promise I'll be gentle," he stated, reaching forward again._  
_Judar hesitated before letting his hair go, allowing it to flow down his back and over his right shoulder, right into Sinbad's awaiting hand._

_"I promise I'll take care of it," he said, running his fingers though the long strands._  
_Judar turned so that his back was facing Sinbad, slowly relaxing as Sinbad combed his fingers through his hair, secretly enjoying the feel of Judar's long, thick and soft hair falling through his fingers a little too much._

_He spent the better part of an hour playing with the longs strands when he eventually started to braid it, tying it off at the end. Sinbad flicked the braid to fall over Judar's shoulder, watching as the small boy turned to look up at him._

_"See? I promised I'd be gentle, didn't I?" Sinbad asked with a teasing smile._  
_A dark blush dusted over Judar's pale cheeks as he pouted, mumbling to himself._

_Sinbad grinned. "What was that? I couldn't quite catch what you were saying?" He leaned in, trying to hear what the child was saying._

_"I said thank you!" Judar shouted, turning to glare at Sinbad._  
_The elder started to laugh, pulling the pouting child into his arms and onto his lap, hugging him tightly. It had been a few months by now when Judar had been carried to them, and Sinbad could hardly be any happier._

_Judar giggled as Sinbad fell to the side, dragging the child with him as they flopped on the bed. The young Magi cuddled into the man's chest, sighing softly as Sinbad wrapped his arms around him, nearly engulfing him entirely in his hold._

_Judar relaxed into the warmth and smell that was Sinbad. The future king started to play with the end of the younger's braid, smiling as he felt the other's breathing even out, falling into a light sleep. Sinbad himself felt his eyes droop, and soon joined Judar in his dreams._

 

* * *

 

 

Slowly, red eyes slid open, blinking a few times to focus his sight, Judar sat up slowly, wondering how he had gotten on the bed, once again. He had cried himself to sleep again on the floor, which he seemed to be doing a lot now since his last visit to Sindria about a week ago. Sighing, he ran his fingers through his short hair, fingers gliding down until he reached the base of his braid.

Judar slid the braid over his shoulder, looking at how many strands had escaped from it, making it look really messy. Judar stood briefly to retrieve his brush, sitting back down, he undid the braid and started to brush through his hair.

It took him a while, but once it was brushed through, he cast a spell to quickly braid it as he stood, leaving the room. He made for the gardens, where he knew he would find a peach tree.

Once there, he plucked a peach and started to eat it, unaware of Hakuryuu practically sneaking up on him. He jumped once the other started talking to him, telling him he would accept the Magi's offer.

Judar didn't think Hakuryuu would want to talk to him after what had happened the last time they were together and Hakuryuu lost to his mother. Judar gave Hakuryuu his usual smirk as he threw his peach away.

 

* * *

 

 

_"Look, we're almost there, Sinbad," Hinahoho called as he cupped a hand over his eyes, staring into the horizon._  
_Sinbad smiled as he looked as well. "I see,"_  
_Ja'far sighed in relief, standing from the table he was sitting at, looking over the work Judar had been doing._

_Said Magi was fast asleep, head resting on top of his folded arms as he breathed deeply, clad in his big brother En's jacket. Sinbad turned to glance at the boy to make sure he was alright, that he hadn't somehow gotten hurt, or was choking in his sleep, something. Anything could happen, right?!_

_Ja'far sighed, noticing the older glance over for the umpteenth time in just five minutes. He was ridiculously paranoid something might happen to Judar if he turned his back for just one minute. Honestly, he was treating the younger as if he were a delicate flower._

_Sure Judar was young and seemed fragile, but-wait. How old was the child, anyway?_  
_"Sin, you might as well come sit here if you're going to continue to stress about him," Ja'far stated._

_Sinbad was there in barely a second, Ja'far blinking in surprise before he scowled in annoyance. Hinahoho chuckled as he watched Sinbad reach forward, gently pulling the younger away from the table and into his lap, fingers running through the Magi's shorter hair as the boy moved to settle better, wrapping his arms around Sinbad's neck._

_"He's quite attached to you, don't you think?" Hinahoho asked as he walked over, taking a seat as well._  
_"Too attached if you ask me," Ja'far mumbled to himself._  
_Sinbad smiled as he started to play with the end of Judar's braid. "It's not just him, I admit, I'm a little too attached to him, too,"_

_Ja'far frowned a little, though that soon disappeared as he watched the, admittedly cute, boy wake up, raising his hand to rub at his eye. The sleeve of his jacket rubbed against his pale skin, leaving it quite a bit reddened when he pulled his hand away._

_Sinbad made a sound that sounded suspiciously like a squeal as he grabbed the boy close and squeezed. Judar made a strange noise as well as the air was forced from his lungs, though he still returned the fierce hug._

_Judar. eventually clambered out of his captors arms, taking his jacket off and putting it in his bag. As they climbed off the boat, he was scooped into Hinahoho's arms and placed on the taller male's neck, squealing as he went. Judar giggled a little, until he started to look around._

_Judar looked at the map Hinahoho was holding, pointing at it as he spoke with Ja'far. "This must be the Sasan Kingdom here," he said, pointing at the map. "So, we'll have to get there on foot,"_

_"What business can the company do with them?" Judar asked curiously, tilting his head to the side._  
_Ja'far looked up at him, eyes sparkling with knowledge. "Sasan is known for their minerals, they produce some of the world's finest metal. But, they barred their doors and refused to trade with other companies,"_

_Judar just started to tune him out after that as Ja'far continued to talk with Hinahoho, gaze moving around them, taking in everything there was to see. He never really did travel much, after all._

_He was eventually put back on the ground as they started to climb, Hinahoho insisting that the exercise would be good for him. Sinbad looked at him sadly, deeply wishing he could just carry the younger all the way, but Hinahoho had made a good point._

_Judar smiled reassuringly up at the older, instead holding out his hand for the other to take, so that he wasn't too sad. Sinbad smiled, taking the other's hand and started to climb._

_Judar gaped at the sight of the kingdom, excitement bubbling up in his chest. It was a truly beautiful place, he admits. He let go of Sinbad's hand briefly, quickly wiping the sweaty palms on his pants before he took the elder’s hand again._

_They slowly climbed down, taking a break in between to drink some water and eat something. They eventually made it into the kingdom, Judar having run a little ahead, openly gawking at everything._

_They sort of huddled together, talking amongst themselves as they looked around. Judar watched as the native people whispered to themselves, glancing at them and then rushing away._

_"Outsiders are not allowed to speak with our citizens, unless they have permission, come this way," a man spoke from behind them._

_They followed after him, still glancing around in curiosity. The man lead them to a building, where they met with a short man. The other three spoke with him, though they were still shot down. Sinbad later found out how they could establish a friendship with this country, and was told to visit the Sasan Knights._

_They walked outside, watching a crowd gathered, moving towards it in curiosity. They watched as a group of knights ride on their horses, staring straight forward, lead by a stern looking man. Sinbad let go of Judar's hand as he ran forward, shouting greetings at the man._

_Judar watched as Ja'far tried to quiet the man down, but he ignored him and continued to shout his greetings at the knight. Judar sweat dropped. Another knight stopped Sinbad, chasing them away. They went to the building where the knights lived, where Sinbad once again shouted, until they were threatened with imprisonment._

_Sinbad yelled at them to run, which they did. They ended up at a restaurant that served foreigners, and ordered food. Judar ate slowly as Ja'far briefly scolded Sinbad, who seemed to ignore him entirely. Hinahoho seemed to be getting a little drunk, Ja'far seemed disheartened, whereas Sinbad seemed to be vibrating with excitement._

_Judar merely sat and observed  everyone, pushing the food around on his plate. He was a little disappointed in this country. Because they were foreigners, they couldn't explore as they wanted, and that was extremely disappointing._

_Ja'far seemed a little too negative, until Sinbad told him not to be, and then pointed out that the women were beautiful, checking one out as she walked passed. Judar frowned at Sinbad as he said this, cheeks puffing up as he pouted._

_He was seemingly ignored as someone tapped on the table next to Sinbad, asking if he could sit next to him. Sinbad pointed out that there were plenty of seats and that he didn't need to sit next to him._

_The person continued to whisper loudly, Hinahoho and Ja'far had their backs to him and Sinbad's attention was fully focused on the newcomer. It was a known fact that Judar was an attention seeker, and he wasn't receiving any attention at the moment, hasn't since that morning, in fact, and that angered him._

_His cheeks puffed up again, eyebrows furrowed as his cheeks started to redden, yet no one noticed him at all. A waitress came and shouted at the newcomer, shaking him around._

_Sinbad pulled the newcomer to a seat once they found out that he was the son of the current knight king. Judar felt even more angered, as no one seemed to notice that he was missing from the fray. Sinbad flirted with the waitress in order to let the newcomer, Mistoras, stay._

_Judar sat, shaking with anger as the other three carried food and drink after him. He watched in slight disgust as Mistoras ate plates, and plates full of food. Mistoras shared his story with them, how the knights were forbidden from leaving, because of their strict religious teachings._

_Sinbad gave him a copy of the book he wrote about his adventures, as the other had begged again to hear about it. He stared at Sinbad in awe as he told him his stories, showing off his powers in the process. Once his curiosity had been sated, Mistoras eventually left._

_"What a good kid." Sinbad chuckled, watching as he left._  
_"Yeah, kind of reminds me of someone," Hinahoho stated, standing next to Sinbad, smiling as he watched the young man leave with the happiest smile any of them had ever seen on his face._

_Ja'far smiled, too, until he turned to look at their fourth party and ask him why he had been so quiet, only to see that the child's spot was empty. Panicking a little, Ja'far turned to look at the backs of his other companions._

_"Where's Judar?" He asked, gaining their attention._  
_Sinbad whipped around so fast, he nearly fell over. "What?!" He practically roared, head looking around frantically, trying to spot the tiny boy._

_"Judar?!" Sinbad yelled, looking around the restaurant._  
_Sinbad turned around at the sound of footsteps, only to receive a painful slap to his head._  
_"How dare you leave this tiny boy to wander off on his own?!" A different waitress screamed, pointing to the waitress from earlier, who had Judar in her arms._

_"Wha?" Sinbad asked dumbly._  
_"He came to us, crying, because he wanted his big brother, and that no one was paying attention to him! How could you! Such a small child requires constant watch and attention!!!" The waitress screamed._

_Hinahoho rubbed the back of his head as they were being scolded, watching as Judar continued to shake in the other waitress' arms. Sinbad watched as the raven turned his head to look at him, cheeks and eyes as red as the day he had first met him._

_Sinbad felt his heart fluttered in pain at the sight, moving forward and taking the child in his arms._  
_"How could you leave a six year old on his own?" The woman stressed._  
_The three turned their heads to look at Judar. "You're only six?" Sinbad asked softly._

_Judar nodded, rubbing a tiny fist in his eyes as he laid his head on Sinbad's shoulder. Sinbad glanced at his companions before turning to look at the woman, apologizing and promising that it would not happen again._

_They went to bed after that, Sinbad holding the small child close. He couldn't sleep too well that night, holding the tiny child as he tried to imagine why his older brother would have to send him away. Especially one so young._

_The next morning, Mistoras came to them, begging them to take him along with them on their travels. Spartos, his younger brother appeared, begging him not to leave._

_Judar personally didn't like the way Mistoras treated his little brother, slightly blinded by the way his big brothers treated him, though he didn't have much of a say. That night, Mistoras left, determination strong within him._

_The next morning, they left the inn, fully prepared for the new day. The other three spoke, though Judar was mostly focused on the Rukh that was moving to gather behind him. He turned, just as the mysterious person greeted Sinbad._

_"Hey," he said, gaining the other's attention._  
_Sinbad turned, recognition on his face as he pointed at the man. "It's you? What are you doing here, Yunan?"_  
_Yunan chuckled. "You've really aged,"_

_Sinbad seemed flabbergasted. "That's not true! I grew up and got a little taller, that's all! I'm still handsome!"_  
_Yunan smiled in amusement. "Oh? Are you sure?" He asked._

_"Who is that, Sin?" Ja'far asked curiously as he pointed at the man._  
_"He's the traveller that lead me to Baal's dungeon two years ago and helped me get home again, but I don't actually know who he is," Sinbad explained._

_"You don't?" Ja'far asked in exasperation._  
_Yunan started to explain why he was there, about the sightings of dungeons all around the world as well as the kingdoms with dungeon capturers._

_Judar was shocked to hear that there were dungeon capturers in the Kou Empire. Someone must have finally conquered the dungeons he was already forced to raise. He missed most of the rest of their conversation, until Yunan looked at him._

_"I see, you have another one," Yunan mumbled, though they could still hear him._  
_Judar looked up at the man, watching as pure white Rukh fluttered around him._

_"Interesting," Yunan mumbled once more, though they could still hear him as he seemed to be looking at something else other than Judar. "Aren't you a cutie?" Yunan asked, moving forward to run his fingers through Judar's hair._

_Sinbad moved to stop him, well aware that the snaller didn't like just anyone touching his hair, but was surprised to see Judar let him. Yunan smiled as he touched the black strands, marvelling in the softness, until he pulled back, bid his farewells, and disappeared._

_Sinbad contemplated the moment a while longer, until he shrugged it off, figuring that he would think about it more later. They left in order to watch Mistoras leave the Knights. The fight was pretty one-sided, until Mistoras was defeated when his father brought out his Djinn._

_Sinbad soon stepped in, stating he'd fight in Mistoras' place. If Sinbad were to win, he would take Mistoras with him and the knight king would allow them to do trade. Should he lose the battle, the king can punish him as he sees fit._

_Judar watched the fight with interest, though it was mostly in Sinbad's favour, especially once he turned into his Full Body Djinn Equip. They disappeared after Sinbad's attack. After nearly an hour of them gone, the knights surrounded them, ready to kill them, when they appeared again._

_They left Sasan with another addition to the Sindria Trading Company family, someone who was as obsessed with women as much as Sinbad, as well as a new ally and Kingdom to do trade with._

 

* * *

 

 

Sinbad was a great man. Judar had once believed, that Sinbad could do anything he set his mind to. He could accomplish anything he set his mind to! In his eyes Sinbad could do nothing wrong.

Apparently, Sinbad could even betray him. Judar hovered next to Hakuryuu, watching the battle unfold from afar, though he was mostly lost in his thoughts.

He grit his teeth as memories of his childhood flittered through his mind, never once relenting to give him even a moment of peace. He felt agitated, he could barely even remember the last time he had a peaceful nights sleep.

His memories plagued him, haunted him more frequently every hour of the day and night. He never had a moment of peace. And here he was, struck with the memory of how they had found Mistoras, and how he became a member of the Sindria family, as they later had started to call it.

He hated Mistoras at first, but as time went on, he became used to him, and got along well enough with him. Until they lost him, that is. A brief image of a woman with light pink hair entered his mind, filling him with utmost rage, until it was all gone, just as suddenly as it had appeared.

Judar smirked as he reached out, and grabbed the power that he needed. Sinbad was a great man, capable of accomplishing anything be set his mind to, even if it meant giving power to his current enemy.

Judar wanted to leave, but a familiar presence made him pause, and turn to look at a small, faraway island.  
"Stay here, Hakuryuu, I'll be right back," he ordered as he started to fly away, towards the island and familiar presence.

He floated above the island, watching as Sinbad and Kouen stared at each other. What kept his attention most, however, was the blond woman stood by Sinbad's side.  
'Queen Artemina,' he thought.

A furious scowl tainted his features as he watched his brother take Aladdin, stating that he would claim him. Rage filled him, his Rukh going slightly crazy, until he was hit with another memory.

He flinched, Rukh fluttering about him in worry as he pressed the palm of his right hand over his right eye. He was unaware of the rest of the conversation below him, instead stuck in his memories.

 

* * *

 

 

_This new place, it was very humid. Hinahoho and Sinbad seemed to suffer the most from the heat, Sinbad throwing something of a mini fit on the ground. Judar just watched nonchalantly as Ja'far electrocuted him._

_Once they did reach the Kingdom, it was even more marvellous than Sasan. They eventually found a river to bathe in before they went to see the princess, who actually tricked them upon entering._

_They were captured, after Sinbad tried to shamelessly flirt with the queen._  
_"No one has ever survived this fall," the queen stated as Ja'far, Sinbad and Mistoras stood naked at the edge of a very high cliff._

_"Let go of me! Sinbad!" Judar struggled against the woman holding him, trying to free himself and save his friends._  
_Sinbad looked back at him, panic clear in his eyes. "Judar!" He struggled as well, but it was all futile._

_"Oh, look at this, what a cutie," the queen said as she grabbed Judar by the back of his shirt, simply pulling him off his feet and towards her face, glancing him over. "You could almost pass as a girl. I think I'll keep you," the queen stated as she then hugged the child to her chest._

_Judar struggled against her grip, but she was too strong. Tears fell down his cheeks as three of his  friends were kicked off the cliff._  
_"No!! SINBAD!!!" He screamed, futily reaching out._

_He cried, kicked, screamed and even scratched the queen, who carried him to a room and placed him on the bed, where he later cried himself to sleep. He didn't know where Hinahoho was, didn't know if Sinbad and the other's were alive, and he especially didn't know what to do._

_For weeks, he spent like this, fighting the queen every step of the way, until it just sunk in that Sinbad wasn't coming back. He had pulled on Kouen's jacket then, hoping it would give him strength as he cried, and cried._

_"I promise I'll try to be strong for you, big brother En," he whispered._  
_"Such heart-breaking sounds," the queen's voice flittered into the room. "Won't you stop crying, child?" She asked._

_Judar tried to stay quiet, though his breathing kept hitching, body shaking violently, until the queen picked him up, hugged him, hummed him a song and played with his hair until he was calm. In her warm embrace, he wondered, was this what it felt like to have a mother?_

 

* * *

 

 

Judar breathed deeply as the memory left him, sweat sticking his bangs to his face as he pulled his trembling hand away, gaze focusing in on the people below him. He watched Kouha and that fool, what his name again? Flabbybaba? Something-baba? Alibaba? Whatever his name was, he was fighting Kouha for Aladdin.

He frowned as Alibaba grabbed Aladdin out of Kouha's arms. Without much thought, Judar started to lower himself to the ground, his black Rukh fluttering wildly as he felt his anger grow. Yunan looked up at him a mere few seconds before he spoke, alarmed at the appearance of the dark Magi.

"Well, well, well, look at this touching sight," he said as he landed on the ground, Rukh chirping at him, telling him to leave before he got hurt. He didn't listen.  
Everyone looked at him in surprise.

"J-Judar?" Aladdin asked, though he seemed a little afraid.  
Kouen had looked surprised, but now he was frowning, arms crossed over his chest.  
Kouha instantly beamed happily at him. "Judar!" He cheered.

He ignored everyone, ignored the fact that Sinbad tensed considerably at his appearance. "When are you going to stop stealing my things from me, baby Magi? Not cool," he stated, smirking rather evilly at Aladdin, who tensed fearfully.

"Judar!" Kouen said warningly, glaring at him.  
Judar's smirk only widened as he spared a brief glance at his brother, before he started stalking up to Aladdin and Flabbybaba.

"First Sinbad, and now my brothers, too? What's next, Aladdin?" He asked calmly, staring down at the child. "What's next?! What else are you going to steal from me, huh?!" He yelled suddenly, eyes flashing in anger. "Tell me!" He roared, moving to grab Aladdin by the front of his shirt.

"Oh, I remember you," the queen of Artemyra suddenly spoke up, causing Judar to freeze as everyone turned to look at her expectantly.  
She laughed quietly, almost sounding as if she were in disbelief. "And I thought you could be passed off as a girl back then, but now. My, my, you sure have grown, haven't you?"

Judar's eyes widened briefly, straightening himself up, he never did turn to meet the woman's eyes.  
"You've certainly grown out of your cry-baby stage, that's for sure," she stated in amusement. "What was it you used to tell yourself back then, when you were separated from your companions? 'I promise I'll try to be strong for you, big brother En,' was it?"

The woman laughed as Judar tensed a little more, Kouen and Koumei glaring at her as Kouha and Kougyoku stared on in surprise, as well as Sinbad and the other members of the Seven Seas Alliance.

The woman's laugh was cut off as Judar briefly hummed a song most of them didn't recognize. "It wasn't so long ago that you held me and sang me to sleep," he stated, a soft smile tugging at his lips, though most of his face was hidden behind his hair.

The queen smiled kindly as she started to walk forward, ignoring Sinbad as he tried to grab her in order to keep her away. Judar turned his head in surprise as he felt warm hands grab his upper arms, and pull his body towards another.

Judar's eyes widened as his head was forced down a little to press into the woman's chest, one arm hugging him, her free hand gently stroking his hair. The familiar warm feeling washed over him, and left him trembling with tears in his eyes, that only Kougyoku, Aladdin and Alibaba could see.

The queen sighed deeply, her hand wiping away a stray tear as Judar clenched his eyes shut.  
"I almost miss your younger you. You were so tiny, and cute, not much of an appetite on you. I remember, every night was such a struggle to get you to eat all of your food. Although, looking at you now, I can tell not much has changed, you're far too skinny," the queen stated, still petting his hair.

She suddenly released him, turning to look at Sinbad. "This couldn't possibly be the dark Magi that's been giving you so much trouble. You were far too obsessed with this boy to have abandoned him. Something must have happened. I remember very clearly how worried you were about him, he was the first thing you asked about after getting your metal vessels back, and continued to ask about him during our fight,"

Sinbad stared at the two of them, a stern look on his face, and in his usual kind eyes, there burned hatred. He bowed his head forward slightly, hair falling into his face.  
"I don't align myself with traitors who get their family killed," he stated coldly.

Surprise flittered across the queen's face, Alibaba, Aladdin, Morgiana, Kougyoku and Kouha widened their eyes, lips parting, jaws dropping. Kouen frowned at Sinbad as Koumei scowled. Judar's entire body tensed as he stared with wide, tear filled eyes at the ground.

The queen looked back at him, frowning as she moved away from him to gain distance between them. Judar raised his head, angry red eyes met gold filled with hate.  
"How many times do I have to tell you until you listen?! It wasn't me!" Judar shouted, voice pleading.

Sinbad grit his teeth and looked away.  
"If you could just let go of your hatred for one second and listen, you'd realize that I had nothing to do with it!! I was loyal to you! I would never have hurt you, or anyone from the Sindria family, you have to realize that!" Judar pleaded, gaze desperate as he explained himself for the hundredth time.

"If you would just open your eyes, you would realize it was all that bitch Serendine," he spat that name with venom.  
"That's enough!!" Sinbad rose his voice, fists clenched at his sides. "I've had enough of your lies, Judar!"

"I'm not lying!" Judar protested.  
"Then it's all far too convenient, don't you agree?! The only other person who could possibly know the truth is dead!" Sinbad stated, angered.  
Something in Judar lurched, his Rukh fluttering, he wanted to deny it, she wasn't dead! But, if she wasn't, then where was she?

Judar scowled at the pure anger and hatred in Sinbad's eyes, until a sudden feeling washed over him, and he snapped. Suddenly, he was calm. Too calm.

"You're right," he said softly, ignoring everyone's surprise as he raised his right hand again to press it to his right eye. "Who would ever listen to me? No one ever listened to me, I'm just a dark Magi, no one would want to listen to pure evil like me,"

"Why should they?!" He suddenly yelled, eyes wild as they connected with Sinbad's eyes. "No one listens to me, no one wants to hear me out! Why? Why can't anyone listen to me?! You're willing to listen to Aladdin, but not me?!"

"Why am I never anyone's first choice?! Sinbad had Yunan first, he was stuck with me for a while, but now he wants Aladdin! Not even Kouen wants me! My own brother would rather abandon me for someone else! Hell, I wasn't even Hakuryuuu's first choice! I'm just a last resort!!" He rambled, looking everywhere as he tugged at his hair, feeling rather pathetic.

Kouen stepped forward, gripping Judar's ahoulder with his hand, concern evident on his face. "Calm down, Judar, you're making a scene,"  
A rather sudden, intense pain had Judar grabbing his head, crying out as his head pounded in agony. "I'm not-gah!!!" He cried out again, eyes clenching shut as he gripped his head tightly, tugging at his hair.

"Why won't it leave me alone? I don't want this, I don't want to remember anymore," he spoke as he cried out in pain again, his Rukh was going insane, fluttering wildly, occasionally landing on his skin in an effort to comfort him, whispering things to him, but it was to no avail. He was just so tired.

"Judar-" Kouen tried again, though he was cut off by the Magi crying out again.  
"I don't want this, please just stop, stop! Stop!" He spoke loudly to himself, he could hear Kouen say his name again, and he snapped. "I'M NOT MAKING A SCENE!!!!" He screamed, voice echoing around them, and suddenly, he was calm.

Briefly, someone else's white Rukh fluttered passed his head. He could feel it landing on his head, his pain ceasing as he allowed the calm feeling to wash over him. The image of that smiling woman with the blue hair was stuck in his mind, though it helped him feel calm.

Yunan's Rukh had helped him compose himself as he took a few deep breaths, already able to spot everyone's bewildered expressions.  
"L-let's go home, brother. If you let me, I can help you re-braid your hair! I can decorate it again like Kouha and I did the last time!"

"Alibaba even taught me how to make a flower crown! I can make you one, if you would let me," Kougyoku spoke up suddenly, sounding timid and unsure, scared of what might be happening to her brother. He didn't blame her, he was scared, too.

"What do you say, Judar-chan? Kouha can help, too, right?" She glanced at her other brother, who seemed to nod frantically, too scared to even speak.  
Judar grunted as Kougyoku opened her mouth to continue her ramblings, holding up a hand to silence her.

Judar stood straight, gently brushing the hair out of his face as a sudden blank look crossed his features. He slapped Kouen's hand away as he turned, walking a few inches before he started to fly, ignoring everyone's calls as he flew away. Hakuryuu had the right mind not to even mention what had happened, just followed after his Magi silently.

 

* * *

 

 

_The air reeked of smoke, and burning flesh. The sounds of crackling fire, people screaming and buildings falling filled his ears, making him want to cover them. So many people were dead, how many did they lose from the Sindria Trading Company alone?_

_Mistoras, Vittel, Rurumu and the others. As well as Serendine, the one who was at fault for all of this, but Judar was the only one that knew. She had made a deal with Al-Thamen, a stupid mistake, really._

_They were to help her regain her country, and in return, she would provide them with information. Information about Sinbad, and him, the Magi. She somehow knew, when no one else did, she found out_

_He wanted to tell Sinbad, but then the whole mess with Maadr and the slaves happened, then Masrur joined the family and they relocated to Balbadd, where Sinbad then decided to leave for the dark continent._

_He wanted to go, but Sinbad absolutely refused, and he was eventually left behind. He felt it a few days after, someone had conquered one of his dungeons, and when they returned, he knew it was Serendine._

_From there, Sinbad was just too busy, having bought an island to built his country on, building and all the paperwork that had to be done. He just didn't get a chance until things seemed to settle, and then, the Parthevian army attacked._

_They slaughtered many, and in the end, they were left with nothing more than ruins. So many of their family were lost. He could clearly see the anger, the hatred in Sinbad's eyes, and he just couldn't find it in himself to tell him what really happened._

_Until they came. They were in Parthevia at the time, trying to help with the chaos, when members of Al-Tharmen came. They were outside, when they called his name, and when he looked back, he had never been gripped with such terrible fear before._

_"You're coming back with us," one said grabbing him and started to drag him away._  
_He struggled, screaming in their grip, gaining Sinbad's attention, who rushed after them immediately. They were already a few metres apart._

_The man moved to sling him over his shoulder, walking a little faster, until Sinbad grabbed his free shoulder, causing him to still and look at Sinbad over his shoulder._  
_"Give him back. Just what do you think you're doing?!" Sinbad demanded._

_"Taking back what is ours," the man stated simply._  
_"Yours?" Sinbad asked in slight surprise as he let go of the man's shoulder_  
_"Yes, you see, Judar is something of a spy for Al-Thamen," the man explained._

_Sinbad's arm fell to his side limply, eyes wide._  
_"I suppose you could say, he's at fault for what happened to your country," the man stated._  
_Sinbad continued to stare at the man, anger and betrayel flashing in his eyes as he looked at Judar._

_The Magi struggled, tears in his eyes as he tried to free himself. "It's not true, he's lying to you Sinbad, it's what they do! Please, I promise I'll-"_  
_"How do you know it's what they do? Are you a part of Al-Thamen?!" Sinbad asked, cutting him off._

_"Well, I mean, I suppose but not willing-" his explanation was cut off._  
_"How could you, Judar?! I trusted you, we trusted you! We're family and yet you betrayed us?!" Sinbad yelled accusingly, anger in his voice._

_"No! It's not true, just let me explain! It was Serendine, please you have to listen-" a sudden, sharp stinging in his cheek cut him off as his head jerked to the side from the force of the slap he received from Sinbad._

_He turned to look at the man with wide, tear filled eyes. Sinbad stared back at him with anger, sadness, but mostly hatred in his eyes._  
_"I should never have taken you in," he whispered._

_Judar's eyes widened further as the tears started to fall freely._  
_"Sinbad!!" He yelled, reaching out for the man as he was carried away._  
_Sinbad clenched his teeth and turned his head away._

_His hand dropped limply on the back of the man carrying him, watching as Sinbad turned his back on him, hair swinging at the movement, and walked away from him._

_He was numb, watching as the man grew smaller, his friends grew smaller, his life, grew smaller, and what was left was an intense feeling of pain, betrayal, and what was once happy, beautiful memories, turned painful and sour._

 

* * *

 

 

He was sat in a tree, trying to relax after the vicious battle they had just had. Fighting Gyokuen was not easy. Though he knew he didn't have long until he had to leave again, he still tried to relax in the minimum time he had, though he was constantly plagued by his memories and a headache that just didn't want to leave him be.

He sighed harshly as he stood, using a magic circle to transport himself to where everyone had seemingly gathered, perching himself up high and unseen as he focused on Aladdin's story of what happened in Alma Torran, if only to keep his mind busy.

Sighing, he finally decided to make an actual appearance. Judar rolled his shoulders, readying himself for this experience, mentally. He took a deep breath, and started to lower himself in through the hole in the roof Sinbad had made.

As he spoke, he felt and watched the Rukh around him fluttering wildly at being in the same room with both Sinbad and Kouen, two of the most important people in his life. As he continued to descend, he took time to look over the other people around the room.

He spotted Ja'far and Hinahoho not too far away from Sinbad, tensing at the sight of him, which, admittedly, hurt quite a bit.  
"Ju-Judar!" Someone said in shock.  
He turned his head, watching the look of shock on both Alibaba and Aladdin’s faces as they said his name in shock as well.

Judar pulled a face. Why did they always say his name like that when they saw him? Was it really always such a surprise for him to appear at the places where people he knew were? He sighed again.

Sinbad frowned as he watched the Magi finally land, though something was different about him. Judar was visibly tired, with dark circles under his eyes, unnaturally pale skin, his hair and clothes seemed a bit dishevelled, too. Despite this, the Magi still kept up his farce.

Sinbad felt the great need to scold the younger for not taking care of himself and envelop him in a long hug. Sinbad knew for a fact that when Judar got that pale, it was because he wasn't eating nearly enough, and by looking at the ribs poking out of his skin, hip bones a lot more prominent than what was normal, he knew he was right.

Judar did as Hakuryuu had told him to do. He commented on Aladdin's strength, tried to get in a fight with Yunan, which he wasn't really too interested in, which was shown clearly by how quickly he dropped the subject, and completely ignored Sinbad, which was hard to do.

It was painful really, to just walk passed the man as if he meant nothing to him, when in reality, Sinbad meant the world to him.

He spewed words of how boring a ceasefire treaty was, and that they shouldn't be talking about something so boring. He also revealed that Gyokuen was Arba, from Alma Torran, and that she didn't exist anymore.

Just then, some of the men from the troops appeared, announcing that Gyokuen had been murdered by Hakuryuu. After that, he made a big show of his current power, before leaving back through a magic circle.

He knew that it wouldn't be much longer until someone went to Kou. Judar sighed as he landed on the ground, just in time for a painful ache in his head to knock the breath from his lungs, legs trembling before giving out as he collapsed to the ground.

He gripped his head in his hands tightly, crying out. With each stab of pain, a new memory came, until he was thrown into a world of only memory, and he stumbled upon one that seemed very important.

 

* * *

 

 

_His body was trembling, aching with burning pain. This was his punishment for defying Al-Thamen. Though they knew it wasn't necessarily his idea to leave the Kou Empire, he was still receiving harsh punishment for not fighting Kouen on leaving, and instead choosing to stay._

_He didn't cry. He chose to stay positive about the entire thing, certain that Sinbad would soon come to his senses and come to his rescue. But, as the weeks dragged on, he realized that Sinbad had truly forgotten him._

_At the time, he was unaware as some of his Rukh turned black at the realization. His punishment consisted of being physically hurt, healed, and then being beaten again. His very last punishment, as they had said it would be, had been an extremely harsh whipping._

_They didn't heal him, which left him lying in a heap of pain and blood. He had moved his braid to fall over his shoulder so as not to stick to his back as the blood slowly dried._

_He jerked as his cell door opened, footsteps echoing as they walked towards him. He was lifted onto his feet and dragged out of the cold cell and down a series of corridors._

_They slowed at another cell door, which was slowly unlocked and opened. Judar's eyes widened in fear and disbelief. There, inside the cell, eyes equally as wide, sat everyone from the Sindria Trading Company family they thought they had lost._

_Mistoras, Rurumu, Vittel, Mahad, Serendine, Tamira, one of Serendine's followers, and Parsine from Artemyra._  
_Rurumu was quite obviously pregnant with her and Hinahoho's fourth baby, and he worried. Was she going to lose the baby if she stayed in there?_

_"Judar!" Mistoras yelled, scrambling up on his feet, running towards him._  
_Mistoras grunted as he was hit, body slamming into the ground with a loud thud._  
_"There is a simple reason why we brought you here, Magi," one member of Al-Thamen stated, placing a hand on his shoulder._

_"We give you our word that we will keep them alive, feed them well and provide whatever they need to live a relative comfortable life here, in exchange, you swear your loyalty to Al-Thamen and do as you are told," the man stated._

_Judar's eyes widened as tears started to gather in them._  
_"Should you not agree to this deal, we will kill them. Should you not follow Al-Thamen's orders, we kill them. Now, do you agree, Magi?" The man asked, hand tightening a little on his shoulder._

_"Don't do it, Judar! They're only going to keep using us to control you! We'll be fine, just don't agree to this!!" Mistoras yelled, struggling under another member of Al-Thamen, who was holding him down._

_"You don't want to disappoint Sinbad anymore than you already have, do you?" The man next to him said._  
_Judar's eyes widened further._  
_"He already hates you, just think how he would feel if he found out that all of his friends were alive, and yet killed simply because you didn't want to do as told?" The man whispered in his ear._

_Serendine grit her teeth in disgust, watching as tears started to fall freely down the small child's cheeks._  
_"That's disgusting! Leave him be, he has nothing to do with all of this!! Take me instead, please! I already did as you asked once, I'll do it again!" She pleaded._

_"You are not a Magi. Besides, you have already been used to your fullest potential, and we greatly appreciate your assistance in helping us destroy Sindria," the man next to Judar stated, causing Serendine to grit her teeth further, tears gathering in her eyes._

_"I didn't mean for this to happen, I just wanted to save my country and little brother." She cried, hiding her face in her hands._  
_"Do you agree, Magi? If you don't, we'll kill them right here, right now, starting with the pregnant woman," he stated._

_The man holding Mistoras down pulled out a sword, pointing it in Rurumu's direction._  
_"I-I agree," Judar whispered urgently._  
_The man next to him relaxed his grip on him, pulling away as he signalled the other to come out of the cell._

_Mistoras sat up, tears in his eyes as he watched the cell door close, slowly obscuring his sight on the crying child. Once the cell door was closed, Judar started to sob, jerked away from the men, and ran away._

_He didn't know where he was going, just that he needed to get away. He was greatly weakened, and yet he still ran, ears picking up a familiar voice, and he ran to it._

_Kouen had his back to Judar, talking with Koumei, obscuring the younger's vision of the crying Magi running toward them with his large frame._  
_"Big brother!" He cried as he started to run to the other man, who turned around in surprise at the sound of the small child's voice._

_Kouen dropped to his knees, opening his arms at the sight of the small, crying child running towards him. He enveloped his arms around the boy as soon as he was within reach, hugging him tightly, though he pulled one hand back at the feeling of something warm and sticky on his skin._

_His eyes widened at the sight of blood on his hand, though he made no sound as he slowly picked the boy up. Judar never did explain why he had been crying so hysterically, and for a long time, didn't want to even leave Kouen's arms._

 

* * *

 

 

Judar stumbled as he walked, nearly falling over on multiple occasions, but he had to continue. His right hand was pressed over his right eye again, cringing and crying out in pain as he followed his memory down to the cells, where he knew his friends and family were being kept, if they were still alive.

He stilled, leaning against a wall as a particularly painful ache had him crouching on the ground, both hands clutching his head as he groaned in pain. Taking deep breaths, Judar was upright and walking again.

After a while longer, the memory left him standing in front of a cell door. He could just about feel the Rukh of multiple people in there, and the sound of quiet conversation and laughter. Judar took a deep breath, and held out his staff in front of him, freezing the lock to the cell.

Mistoras laughed quietly as Vittel groaned in frustration, falling backwards, cards flying everywhere. They had been playing some card games, but Vittel proved to be terrible at it, and kept throwing tiny fits of frustration as he kept on losing.

Rurumu was sat on the bed nearby, smiling at the pure frustration in the other. Serendine was sat next to her, currently brushing through her much longer hair. They may have been prisoners, but they were well taken care of, as promised.

Parsine and Tamira were sat on another bed, quietly talking and giggling, while Mahad sat silently by the side of Vittel, holding his cards in his hands, stoic as ever, not revealing anything. Mistoras had a hand clamped over his mouth as muffled laughter left him.

Pulling his hand away, Mistoras let out a breath, which left in a white cloud. Surprise flittered across his features at this, taking a deep breath, and released it through his mouth. Again, it left in a white cloud.

"Why is it so cold all of a sudden?" Serendine spoke up, a visible shiver wracking through her body.  
Vittel sat up, glancing around as he started rubbing at his arms.

Parsine's teeth started to chatter as she rubbed her arms as well, used to warm weather instead of this sudden coldness that seemed to seep into their bones.

They slowly started to stand up, glancing around, until the loud sound of something hitting the door had them all jumping. They tensed, ready for a fight. The sound of the lock breaking hit their ears, and someone seemed to struggle to open the door.

They squinted a little at the figure, not quite as used to the light. Rurumu made a sound of shock as she recognized the boy standing in the doorway.  
"I finally came to free you guys," he stated, a small smile tugging at his lips, one hand pressed against the wall, supporting him in the doorway.

"Judar?" Mistoras whispered in surprise.  
Judar smirked tiredly at the group as a breath passed his lips.  
He looked quite different to what they remembered, but in some way, he hadn't changed.

He seemed tired, dark circles under his eyes, sweat sticking his hair to his forehead, he was quite obviously underweight, but other than that, he still seemed the same. Only, he was about fifteen years older.

Judar stood straight, ran a hand through his hair and smiled. "Well then? Aren't you guys coming out?" He asked.  
Mistoras snapped out of his shock, grinned, and practically sprinted to the door, where he enveloped the younger in his arms.

As they hugged, Mistoras walked forward, forcing Judar backwards so that they could get out of the doorway in order for the other's to leave the room. Parsine was crying as she left the room, practically forcing Mistoras off of the younger raven so that she could hug him, whispering thank you's in his ear as she did.

Judar returned the hugs, enjoying the warmth they all held as they embraced him. Rurumu was last, kneeling in front of him in order to be at eye level as she smiled warmly at him, and hugged him.

Judar enjoyed the contact until he pulled away. "Let's get you guys out of this place," he stated.  
He could sense their excitement as he started to lead them outside, though they were mostly silent.

He watched, feeling almost sad as they walked outside.  
"It's been fifteen years since I last saw the outside, and breathed fresh air," Vittel stated as he took a deep breath, which the other's did as well.

Mistoras laughed joyously as he ran forward, and collapsed into the grass as he touched it. Parsine and Tamira laughed and joined him, falling around as they felt the grass.

Vittel, Mahad and Rurumu stood and watched, smiling as the others continued to laugh. Judal stood there as well, arms crossed on his chest as he smiled softly at the sight.

"Judar," Serendine's voice reached his ears as he felt a hesitant hand rest on his upper arm.  
Judar turned his head to look at her, smile slipping.  
Serendine had tears in her eyes, a guilty expression on her face.

He rose a questioning brow at her.  
"I'm so sorry," she whispered softly.  
He frowned, arms dropping to his sides as his hands balled into fists.  
"I-I shouldn't have done that, it was foolish of me, and I'm truly sorry, please, I beg of you, forgive me!" She pleaded, tears dripping down her cheeks.

Mistoras, Parsine and Tamira had stopped laughing and rolling around in the grass, instead, they were sat upright, watching the exchange with interest. Rurumu was smiling softly, clearly remembering how she had consoled the crying woman for quite a few nights after Judar first made that deal.

This would mean a lot to Serendine, if she could get Judar's forgiveness. The other's flinched as a dark scowl painted itself across Judar's features, looking down on Serendine with pure murder, hatred, heartache and betrayel in his eyes.

"I should kill you for what you did," Judar stated, grip tightening on his staff. "You ruined my life." He chuckled, humourless.  
Serendine fell to her knees, tilting her head downwards. "Do it,"

Mistoras scrambled to his feet. "No, don't!" He yelled, rushing forward.  
"Do it!!" Serendine encouraged. "I certainly deserve it!" She cried, clenching her eyes shut, preparing herself for what was to come.

Judar raised his staff, holding on tightly to that burning hatred, fully prepared to finally exact his revenge and be free of this pain. But, he didn't miss the disapproving look Rurumu gave him, he didn't miss Mistoras and Vittel pleading with him not to do it, and he didn't miss how Parsine and Tamira were clutching each other in fear.

But, just like he didn't miss any of their reactions, they didn't miss the sight of his hand trembling, lower lip quivering, and the tears that fell down his own cheeks and onto the grass as he swung his staff to the side.

A strange, magic circle appeared in front of them all. "This magic transfer circle will take you directly to Sinbad," Judar explained as he took a step away from Serendine, voice thick with unshed tears.

Serendine looked up at him in surprise, tears staining her cheeks as her lips parted. "Why?" She whispered.  
Judar smiled down at her, which seemed incredibly false because of his own tears.

"It's not my right to judge you for your mistakes, I'll let Sinbad do that. Just, please." He gave a pleading look. "Tell him the truth," he requested in a whisper.  
She stared up at him still, feeling astonished, but nodded with determination. "I will,"

"We can talk to him together," Judar stated, closing his eyes with a smile as he reached out a hand to help her to her feet.  
She took it with little hesitance, smiling as she wiped her tears away.

"Good, now, Judar, I'd like to talk to you about how you obviously haven't been looking after yourself," Rurumu said with a sweet smile, though there was a dangerous edge to her tone.  
Judar merely gave her blank look, before gesturing to the magic transfer circle.

"We'll talk about it later, aren't you curious to see how your husband and other children have been doing?" He asked, clearly changing the subject to distract her.

Vittel shouted in surprise, turning to look at him with expecting eyes. "That's right! How have our boss been doing? And the Sindria Trading Company?! We may have been well taken care of, but we never got any news!!" Vittel said with urgency.

Judar smiled a small smile as he gestured to his magic. "Step through and see for yourself," he encouraged.  
They all seemed to take deep breaths, readying themselves.

Mistoras hesitated in front of the circle, turning to look at him from over his shoulder. "You're coming too, right?" He asked.  
Judar smiled innocently and reassuringly. "Right behind you," he stated as he started to walk forward.

This seemed to ease Mistoras as he grinned and turned back, stepping through the magic along with eveyone else. Judar had stopped walking just as they turned their backs to him, closing the magic circle behind them, being sure to send them right to Sinbad's side, as promised.

Once that was done, he smiled sadly at the spot they had been in not too long ago, dropping his staff as he fell to his knees, wrapping his arms around himself in a hug of sorts as he started to sob.


	2. Hold On To Me, You're All I Have

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character in this story, neither do I own the music lyrics which is used for the title of this story and it's chapters.
> 
> Warning: Out of character, manga spoilers and smut.  
> Please excuse any of the mistakes I may have missed whilst editing this.*

"I don't know, Sinbad, something just seems to be really off about him lately," Hinahoho stated, watching as Sinbad gathered all of his metal vessels.  
"I agree," Sinbad said softly, eyebrows furrowed, thoughts disturbed by the recent behaviour of the dark Magi.

Ja'far sighed loudly. "We shouldn't even be discussing this. Judar is no longer our problem, or have you already forgotten that?" He asked, slight irritation in his voice. "But still, his behaviour lately has been very worrisome," he stated, eyes downcast as he stared at the floor, mind racing from different memories.

From the time Judar seemed to betray them, yet insisted on the fact that he hadn't, even years later. To that time Drakon had told him about, when Judar seemed to have that mini melt down, to his most recent behaviour, coupled in the facts that he wasn't taking care of himself.

Ja'far scowled at that, wanting to grab the younger and scold him for hours, and yet...he clenched his fists, he couldn't do that, now can he?  
"Ohhhh." Sinbad hummed. "Seems like I wasn't the only who got attached," the king's voice seemed to take on a teasing tone as he smirked at his friend.

"I was not attached, far from it," Ja'far scoffed at him.  
"Sure," Sinbad teased as Hinahoho chuckled at them.  
They tensed as suddenly, a familiar magic transfer circle appeared in front of them.

"Isn't that Judar's?!" Ja'far asked as he grabbed his weapons in his sleeves, ready to fight, should the need arise.  
And yet, it seemed to stay open for longer than necassary.  
"Did he think we would fall for this and walk right on through?" Sinbad asked quietly.

Suddenly, multiple people stepped through, and yet, none of them expected to see the faces they did in that moment.  
"This is impossible," Sinbad stated, eyes wide.  
"Rurumu?" Hinahoho whispered in disbelief.

"Look! It's just like he promised, there they are!" Mistoras said, pointing. "Sinbad!!" He yelled, waving ecstatically as he jogged closer.  
"Mistoras?!" Sinbad exclaimed in shock.

"Old friend, look at you! It's so good to see you!" Mistoras said as he came to a stop in front of the king.  
Hinahoho held Rurumu at arms length, asking if she were real, and at the affirmative nod, he pulled her in for a tight hug.

Vittel and Mahad were surrounding Ja'far, crying river like tears of joy as they both hugged him, exclaiming about how he grew up so much! Serendine, Parsine and Tamira stood to the side, smiling happily at the sight.

"Wait!" Sinbad said, pushing Mistoras back from his joyful hug. "How are you all still alive?" He asked, staring Mistoras straight in the eyes as he did.  
"Ah, it's all because of Judar," Tamira stated, with a soft smile.

"What?" Sinbad asked, clearly surprised and disbelieving.  
"Yeah!" Mistoras said joyfully, until a confused look crossed his features. "Wait, where is he? He said he'd be right behind us," he stated as he glanced around.

"Mistoras!" Sinbad shouted, gaining the other's attention. "You said Judar saved you, right? How?" He asked urgently, gripping Mistoras' upper arms tightly, hope he once thought to  be dead rekindled in him.

This was it, this could officially prove Judar's innocence, and he could welcome the younger back into his life, back into his arms.

Rurumu pulled away from her husband. "That's right. We were never killed in the war, we were taken hostage by members of Al-Thamen. They used us as a means of bargaining with Judar, threatening our lives should he disobey them," she explained.

"They forced him to be a part of their organization, and unless he wanted us killed, he had to obey their every order," Mistoras said, frowning to himself. "I didn't want him to do it, but they said something about how you'd hate him even more if he let us die,"

Mistoras suddenly scowled, hands tightening into fists. "Before he knew we were there, we could often hear his screams through the halls," he whispered, tears of anger in his eyes as he grit his teeth.

"They tortured him!" He yelled, suddenly glaring up into Sinbad's eyes. "We could clearly hear the beatings, his screams of pain, and his crying afterward, he always kept telling himself that you'd come to rescue him, but you never did! Why, Sinbad, why?!" Mistoras asked, angrily shoving the man's hands off of him.

"That day, the day we finally saw him, he looked so tired, his hair stuck to his face, blood smears on his face, and his back," Mistoras trailed off briefly. "They whipped him the day before, and he had to keep his hair over his shoulder, lest it get stuck to his wounds and cause him more pain. There was so much blood," he trailed off in a whisper.

"Why didn't you come save him? You were so attached to him, I would have thought that you would have come and saved him before he was in there for even a day," Rurumu said as she stared at Sinbad.

They were quiet for a while, not meeting anyone's gaze.  
"Sinbad," Rurumu said sternly.  
"You have to understand, the thought does disturb and hurt me on deep levels, but the war was his fault, and-"

"That's not true!" Serendine cut Sinbad's explanation off sternly.  
They looked at her in surprise as she marched over towards him with determination, before bowing in front of him. "What happened to Sindria, was entirely my fault," she admitted.

Ja'far and Hinahoho gasped lightly as Sinbad suddenly felt a little light headed.  
"Please, none of it was Judar's fault, he didn't even know about it until it actually happened, and in the end, it all turned out to be another way to get their hands on him. Please, forgive me." She pleaded. "I just wanted to save my little brother and country,"

Sinbad barely even heard what she said, his hand pressing to his forehead as this information sunk in. "None of it was Judar's fault?" He asked softly, sounding almost breathless.

Serendine shook her head. "No,"  
"So he's...he's completely innocent?" Sinbad asked.  
"Yes." She nodded.  
"Sin?" Ja'far asked, making the same conclusion as Sinbad had.

"We need to get to the Kou empire," Sinbad said, suddenly starting forward as he rushed towards his ship. "We need to get there now!!" He ordered.  
Ja'far smiled as he rushed after his king, followed closely by everyone else. They could finally get back one of their family members.

  


* * *

  


_Kouen subtly clenched his teeth, facial expression carefully neutral as he cleaned the wounds on Judar's back. The tiny Magi had obviously been whipped, and was constantly whimpering and crying out in pain._

_After the gruelling experience, Kouen bandaged the boy and dressed him in clean clothes. Koumei sat nearby, frowning, eyes saddened as their self proclaimed little brother kept making pained noises._

_Once he was redressed, Judar wrapped his arms around Kouen's neck and held on, not wanting to let go, and simply refusing to._  
_"Judar," Kouen said softly, yet his voice was stern. "What happened? Can you tell us what happened in Reim?"_

 _Judar was quiet, shaking his head quickly in Kouen's neck._  
_Kouen sighed softly. "Did something happen with Sinbad?" Kouen pressed. "Who did this to you? Was it Al-Thamen?"_

_Judar's body started to tremble, Kouen's eyes widening slightly at the wetness dripping onto his shoulder. Judar started to sob quietly into his shoulder, answering all of his questions with a quiet, broken 'yes.'_

_He didn't go into any further detail other than, yes, Al-Thamen were the ones who hurt him, and that Sinbad hated him now. He didn't, couldn't talk about it, not from a lack of trying, but more from the fact that he started to cry whenever he spoke or thought about it._

_He spent weeks in Kouen's arms, sleeping with the older male in his bed, clinging to him wherever they went. And whenever Kouen was unable to look after him, he would cling to Koumei._

_It was one day, when the three of them sat in the garden, surrounded by flowers, and peach trees, it was just so serene, and for the first time in weeks, Judar was calm, humming softly to himself as he brushed half of his hair, the other half being fiddled with by Kouen, who was reading scrolls that lay across his lap._

_Koumei was sat nearby, reading through scrolls as well, occasionally looking up to watch the two with a fond smile. And for the shortest time, everything felt perfect._

_It was thirty minutes later that Al-Thamen broke their peace, ripped Judar from Kouen's arms, threatened the two brothers into cooperation, and it was then that they watched the tiny Magi snap, and saw his Rukh turn pitch black._

_It was the last time either of them saw the Judar that they loved, for the next time they saw him, the kind, gentle boy they once knew, was replaced by someone cruel and twisted._

_  
_

* * *

__

_  
_

"Alibaba, stop!" Aladdin yelled, throwing an arm out to stop his friend going further.  
Alibaba stopped, surprise on his face at Aladdin's sudden yell.  
"What is it, Aladdin?" He asked.

"There's a barrier," Aladdin said, "as soon as we go in, we'll be unable to use magic and there will be an army waiting for us,"  
Alibaba looked shocked for a moment before he grit his teeth. "Bastards,"

"Awh, so you already found out? That sucks," a familiar voice spoke from behind them.  
The two whirled around to face Judar, scowling up at him.  
"Judar!" Aladdin called in surprise.

Judar frowned a little. There they go again, saying his name like that. Seriously, why were they even surprised to see him? This was the Kou empire, after all.

Alibaba frowned at the sight of the dark Magi. It hadn't been too long since he had last seen him before the summit, maybe two months, and he'll admit that a lot has happened to him in that time, and by the looks of it, so had Judar.

In that time, the Magi somehow manages to look even more tired, with added redness to his eyes, nose and cheeks. The smile he gave them was so obviously forced, that it made it all too clear to Alibaba that he had been crying no too long ago.

By the way Aladdin was looking at Judar, it was only obvious to himself.  
"Well, since you caught me so soon, I guess I can put the barrier down," Judar stated, shrugging carelessly. "You want to see Hakuryuu, don't you?" He asked softly, almost sounding gentle.

"Seems we aren't too welcome," Aladdin mumbled softly.  
Alibaba grunted, slightly disturbed by the fact that Aladdin didn't hear Judar's gentle tone, or see the obvious signs that something very wrong was going on with the dark Magi.

Instead of saying something, he followed after Judar alongside Aladdin, watching as Judar paused briefly to take down the barrier and lead them to where Hakuryuu was.

Aladdin paused, breaking several points of power sources, explaining that Judar would not be able to put up a new one as long as they did so. Deep inside, Alibaba was truly nervous about seeing Hakuryuu again.

He had little to no idea how much the other had changed, and that made him nervous. But, no matter how much he changed, Alibaba simply refused to give up on his friend.

Hakuryuu was sat up in his throne, looking down on them with a look of superiority.  
"Hey," Aladdin greeted.  
"It been a long time, Hakuryuu," Alibaba stated, free hand clenched at his side, his other gripping his sword tightly.

Suddenly, a small smile stretched over Hakuryuu's lips, an almost fond look crossing his features. "Indeed it has been, Alibaba," he stated.  
For some reason, seeing Hakuryuu smile like that, it made him feel calm.

"Judar, wait outside, these are old friends of mine, and I'm sure Alibaba would agree to it being easier if we spoke alone," Hakuryuu ordered, though he seemed to speak in a light tone with his Magi, a distant look of concern in his eyes.

"Kay, Aladdin and I will keep guard," Judar stated, smiling almost innocently at Aladdin.  
The younger seemed apprehensive, but followed after the other, once he received an affirmative nod from Alibaba.

Judar flew up into the air, where he sat down on his staff, observing Hakuryuu and Flabbybaba's encounter from afar. Aladdin stopped a few feet away from him, staring down in concern, hand loosely held into a fist, the other gently gripping his staff.

"Awh, what's the matter? What's got you so tense, baby Magi?" Judar asked in a teasing tone.  
He smirked as he received a glare from Aladdin, who then turned back to the front, staring at his friend.

He smiled softly at the back of Aladdin's head, feeling envious of his friendship with Alibaba. It wasn't too long ago that he and Hakuryuu were exactly the same. Judar knew what was about to happen the second he felt that familiar dull ache in his head.

Slowly, he raised his hand to press his palm onto his eye, not at all feeling enthusiastic about what was going to happen. He could only hope that Aladdin would catch him should he lose control of his magic and fall.

Aladdin was still stuck in his own thoughts, when he was ripped away by the sound of Judar crying out in pain. He could feel the other's dark Rukh flutter about nervously, and as he turned around, he could see the dark Rukh.

The Rukh was in a panic, some fluttering about uselessly as other gently landed on any patch of Judar's skin they could find, in an effort to calm the Magi down.

Judar was gripping at his head as he leaned forward on his staff, seemingly oblivious to the fact that he might just lean too far and fall off. Aladdin moved forwards slowly, gently reaching out.

He jumped when Judar made a very sudden sound of pain, and then simply slouch before he and his staff just fell. Aladdin yelped in surprise and shock before he raced after the other, not wanting to see the result of someone colliding with the ground from so high up.

He managed to catch Judar just in time before he met the earth, and couldn't help but sigh in relief as he gently placed the other on the ground, collapsing on his knees next to Judar. His limbs felt a little numb, heart pounding from that scare.

For a few minutes, he just sat and watched their Rukh interact. Judar was unconscious, and his Rukh seemed to flutter about him nervously. He watched as his own Rukh fluttered about, occasionally landing on Judar briefly, before fluttering away.

Some of his Rukh would gently touch Judar's dark Rukh, pure white and pitch black contrasting one another, yet still the same as they fluttered and landed on the Magi surrounding them.

Aladdin would shudder the first time Judar's Rukh touched him, but not because it felt overly evil or anything like that, but because some of his Rukh felt empty, and afraid.

Judar's Rukh wasn't all that different from his own.  
Judar groaned, eyes opening gently, squinting against the sunlight before his blurry vision cleared and he could now see Aladdin by his side.

"Aladdin?" He asked softly, confused.  
The blue haired Magi smiled gently at him. "You really scared me for a second there, you just fell out of the sky! I thought you were going to die,"

Judar blinked, confused at the worried expression on Aladdin's face. Slowly he sat up, noting that, yes, he had, in fact, fallen out of the sky. He didn't feel hurt, so he had to assume that Aladdin had caught him, that or his body had more endurance than he initially thought. He rather believed the first thought.

A strange, fluttering feeling had him look down at his left hand. It wasn't unlike his Rukh to touch him occasionally, especially after he had a particularly painful memory, but this felt a little too different.

There was white Rukh. White blended in with his black as the two colours danced around each other, landing on both Magi. Slightly amazed, Judar raised his left hand to better look at what he assumed was Aladdin's Rukh.

He frowned sadly, not even noticing as the Rukh fluttered away. He had long forgotten what it felt like to have white Rukh.

"One way or another, I don't intend on leaving this battlefield with my life," he said in response to Aladdin's earlier statement.  
Aladdin's eyes widened in disbelief and surprise.  
"What?"  


  


* * *

  


_"Come now, don't be shy, Judar-chan, I'm sure Hakuryuu will welcome you with open arms. He's a kind boy, after all, and so in need of friends," Gyokuen said, looking down at the tiny boy hiding behind her leg._

_"B-but what if he hates me?" Judar whispered, a look of fear on his face._  
_Gyokuen smiled gently as she crouched, placing both hand on Judar's shoulders, making a mental note to start feeding the boy more._

 _"He won't hate you. Just be yourself, and I'm sure that he'll love you," she stated, gently squeezing his shoulders for emphasis._  
_"You think so?" He asked, unsure._  
_"I know. After all, he is my son," she assured with a proud smile._

_A timid smile graced Judar's features as he felt what little confidence he had return to him. Gyokuen stood then, taking Judar's small hand in her own, and walked forward, leading the way to where she knew her youngest was currently training._

_Judar watched in slight awe as a kid about his age trained with his instructor. He was maybe a little taller than Judar himself, with black hair, blue eyes and porcelain skin. Judar smiled as Hakuryuu trained._

_"Hakuryuu," Gyokuen called, smiled and waving a small wave once she gained her child's attention._  
_"Mother!" Came the excited reply as the instructor stood back._  
_Hakuryuu dropped his sword as he ran to his mother, excited to finally meet the boy his mother had promised to introduce him to._

_He came to a stop a few feet from his mother, his eyes moving to rest on the small boy that held her hand, looking at him with a mixture of nervousness and curiosity._

_"Hakuryuu, this is Judar, that boy I promised to let you meet. And Judar, this is my son, Hakuryuu," Gyokuen introduced, smiling as she gently moved the tiny Magi forward._

_Hakuryuu seemed to bounce on the spot in excitement, whereas Judar looked at him timidly. Suddenly, Hakuryuu grabbed on of the other's hands in his own, blue meeting red as their gazes locked._

_"It's nice to meet you! Do you want to go and play?!" Hakuryuu asked in excitement._  
_Judar looked over his shoulder Gyokuen, who nodded and shoo'ed them away with her hand._

 _"Okay!" Judar answered, feeling just as enthusiastic._  
_Hakuryuu barely wasted any time at all as he dragged Judar away, barely responding at Gyokuen's call for them not to stay out too late._

_Judar laughed and smiled as Hakuryuu led him to the peach garden, where they sat down and talked. Hakuryuu started talking a mile a minute, telling him all about his family, his training and his dreams._

_Judar did the same, growing just as excited and energetic as the other. He told him about his two big brothers, and how they were the best brothers in the world, especially big brother Kouen._

_After that, they seemed to get along well, nearly inseparable. They were the best of friends, until Judar was taken. Hakuryuu was really sad when he found out, not know what to do now that his best friend was gone, and no one knew where he went._

_Judar had been gone a few weeks when the fire happened. It was tragic, he lost most of his family, nearly died, and now, his skin was scarred beyond repair. Hakuei told him that he had been in a coma a few weeks._

_As time rolled on and he slowly recovered, ge grew to resent everyone except his sister. And after a few more weeks, he was told that Judar was back. He went to seek him out, and found the young Magi sat in the garden underneath a peach tree, staring into the distance._

_"Judar!" He called, gaining the Magi's attention._  
_Judar turned his head, perking up at the sight of Hakuryuu, he stood and ran to meet his friend._  
_"Hakuryuu! There you are! I've been told you got hurt and that I couldn't  see you, are you ok-"_

 _His words of concern were cut off as Hakuryuu shoved him. Judar nearly tripped over his own feet, but managed to stay up._  
_"Wha- Hakuryuu?" Judar looked in shock at Hakuryuu, who was crying, but glaring angrily at him._

 _"Where have you been?!" Hakuryuu asked angrily, glaring at his friend._  
_Something seemed different about Judar, but he couldn't place it, and he also didn't care at that moment._  
_Judar open his mouth to answer, but Hakuryuu interrupted him._

_"Huh?! Where were you?! Nearly my entire family was killed in a fire! I was in a coma for nearly a month, and where were you? Where were you when I needed you the most?! This entire time, where have you been?" Hakuryuu asked, mostly repeating the same thing in his anger._

_Judar took a hesitant step forward, reaching out with a hand. "Hakuryuu, I-"_  
_"NO!!" Hakuryuu screamed, violently shoving Judar to the ground, where he loomed over him, and glared. "I don't want your excuses, I hate you! I HATE YOU!!" His last sentence echoed around them._

_Hakuryuu panted, rubbing his tears away, eyes briefly closed before he looked down at Judar, only to have his eyes widen. Judar had never seemed so broken to him as he did then, with his lips parted as shaken, broken breaths passed them._

_His dull red eyes were wide, and yet shining with tears as they ran down his slowly reddening cheeks. Judar's lower lip trembled, his only warning, before the Magi started to sob loudly._

_Judar placed his hands over his face as he just cried and screamed his heartache away. First he lost Sinbad, then he found out his friends were safe, but held in a dungeon and would be killed if he disobeyed Al-Thamen, then he lost Kouen and Koumei, and now Hakuryuu, too._

_Hakuryuu couldn't keep the surprise from his face as he just watched Judar break in front of him. But instead of moving to comfort his friend, he scowled, turned and ran away with tears in his eyes._

_It was never the same after that. Judar would occasionally pop up and talk to him cheerfully as if nothing had happened, constantly claiming that he would join Hakuryuu's side in a heartbeat._

_As they grew older, Judar started to pester him about capturing a dungeon, and yet he continued to push the Magi away. For fifteen years, he would push Judar away, or avoid him, or something of the like, but the other always came back._

_Until the day Hakuryuu finally gave in and excepted him and his offers, and they killed Gyokuen together, only to be separated once more._  


_  
_

* * *

__

_  
_

"Judar can never return to this planet,"  
"Then I'll just make you dispel that magic, Aladdin,"  
"I can't," Aladdin whispered sorrowfully. "Judar is gone forever,"

The weight of those words finally settled onto his shoulders, and he stared up at the sky where Judar had just disappeared, not knowing what to do.  
"Alibaba is gone, just like him," he stated, not quite paying attention to anything except for the fact that Judar was gone.

Aladdin was silent as he stared at Alibaba's body, unsure of what to do now.  
"You used a really cruel magic, Aladdin," Hakuryuu whispered.

Aladdin clenched his eyes shut. "I know, but it was the only magic I could use! I didn't want to kill him, not after what he said earlier,"  
Hakuryuu whipped his head around to look at Aladdin in surprise. "Judar said something? Tell me what he said!" He demanded.

"Aladdin!!!" Someone called, interrupting the young Magi's answer.  
The two turned their heads to watch as Sinbad, Ja'far, Hinahoho and a large group of unfamiliar people came running towards them.

"There you are, Aladdin!" Sinbad yelled, smiling at the sight of the younger.  
"Alibaba!!" Ja'far cried in shock and ran towards his fallen comrade, touching him gently.

"Ali-what the-? Hakuryuu!" Sinbad stammered, before noticing Hakuryuu and moving towards him. "Your legs! What the hell happened here?! And where is Judar?" He asked urgently, not quite sure what to do.

Hakuryuu gently pushed Sinbad's hovering hands away as he moved to stand, his legs and feet being replaced by plant as he moved. He grit his teeth in pain as he did, but endured.

"Are you okay with your legs like that? Doesn't it hurt?" Parsine asked, cringing a little.  
"I'm fine," Hakuryuu said through gritted teeth. "I can cope with this, it's just two of my legs, but," he trailed off staring sadly up at the sky. "I never imagine I would lose Judar,"

Everyone around them seemed to tense at his words as Aladdin looked away sadly.  
"Wait, what do you mean you lost Judar?" Sinbad asked urgently.

"He's gone, and he won't be coming back, ever," Aladdin answered, closing his eyes.  
Sinbad seemed to freeze in his spot, staring with wide eyes at his hands. Judar was gone, and no matter that he was found innocent, Sinbad would never get to hold him again. Never even get to see him again.

Mistoras stared at the blue haired boy before he scowled. "This is all your fault! What the hell have you done!?" He screamed, suddenly appearing and punching Aladdin on his cheek.

Aladdin cried out, falling back at the force of the hit, only for his attacker to straddle his waist and punch him repeatedly.  
"Stop!!" Vittel yelled as Tamira screamed in shock and Parsine cried, sobbing loudly.

"This is all your fault! You murderer! What did Judar ever do to you, why did you do this? WHY?!" Mistoras yelled in Aladdin's face before he was pulled away by Hinahoho, struggling all the way.

"It was the only way!!" Aladdin yelled in despair, tears and blood rolling down his face as he cried, lying on his back. "It was the only way I could stop him while keeping him alive! I didn't want him to die, not now, especially after what he said!" He clenched his eyes shut, swallowing. "He said he didn't intend to leave this battle with his life, one way or another,"

"Aladdin," Ja'far said sadly as the boy continued to cry, breathing ragged.  
Serendine collapsed to her knees, staring at nothing as tears gathered in her eyes. Rurumu hugged both Parsine and Tamira as they cried, feeling rather heartbroken herself.

Mistoras just started crying in Hinahoho's arms as he held him. Vittel and Mahad stared sadly, unsure of what to do. Hakuryuu had been surprised at that one person's actions, the one just attacked Aladdin out of nowhere, but turned back around once everything calmed down.

He was, admittedly, surprised by the amount of friends that Judar seemed to have. He smiled sadly as memories of them together as children crossed his mind. He took a moment, having to calm himself lest he start to cry as well.

Aladdin eventually got to his feet and gathered Alibaba on his carpet, unsure of what to do, when suddenly, lightning struck and a strong power rippled through the air.  
"Sin!" Ja'far's yell could be heard over the sound.

' _It's all Aladdin's fault,'_

Aladdin turned in time to see Sinbad point his sword at him, Baal's full body Djinn equip was intimidating once faced with the prospect of having to face Sinbad's wrath.

"You took a very precious thing away from me, Aladdin," Sinbad said, though his voice sounded strange.  
Aladdin took a step back in fear. What was he supposed to do now?! He had used up so much Magoi in his fight against Judar, would he be able to face Sinbad, now, too?

"Sin, calm down, this isn't something you want to do!" Ja'far said, taking a step to stand in front of Aladdin.  
Sinbad frowned even more as he grit his teeth. "He took Judar away from me! Judar!" He stressed.

"He didn't have a choice, Sin, you know that!! Just think a little more clearly, please!" Ja'far begged.  
There were tears in Sinbad's eyes that surprised both Aladdin and Hakuryuu.

A few tense seconds later, Sinbad allowed Baal's equip to recede as he sheathed his sword.  
"I don't want to see you again, Aladdin. Should I ever lay my eyes on you again, I won't hesitate to kill you," Sinbad warned before he turned around, and walked away.

  


* * *

  


_The silence had his ears ringing, dull, red eyes staring up at the ceiling of his bedroom, body resting comfortably on his bed. He was tired, and yet found himself unable to fall asleep._

_Ten years ago, he had lost everything he ever cared about, all at once. First Sinbad, then Kouen and Koumei, Hakuryuu, and now, his memories. He knew for a fact that it could not be any illness, he was far too young for any of the memory losing illnesses, and he also knew he did not have amnesia._

_He suspected that the experiments Gyokuen had been doing on him was the cause of his memory fading, and yet, he didn't seem to care all that much. He just couldn't bring himself to worry for his own wellbeing._

_The now sixteen year old Judar turned onto his side, curling into a ball as he clung to the few good memories he had left of his time with Sinbad and the Sindria family._

_He constantly found himself wondering how they were doing, what they looked like now, did they think of him? Was he as constantly on their thoughts, as they were on his own, even ten years later?_

_He sighed, closing his eyes in an attempt to fall asleep, when he shot up in his bed, scowl contorting his face. Someone had conquered one of his dungeons, someone he didn't invite._

_Frustrated and angered beyond belief, Judar climbed off of his bed, ignoring the sensation of his braid briefly tickling his mostly open back before fluttering towards the ground, he gathered his carpet and jumped out of his window, the carpet levitating before flying in the direction he knew the dungeon was._

_Once he did reach it, he watched in utter disbelief as a few familiar figures stood around in the hole made by the dungeon appearing, and now disappearing._

_There stood Sinbad, Ja'far, Hinahoho, Drakon, Masrur, Sharrkan and someone who looked a lot like Mistoras, only much younger. They were all either grown up or much older._

_There were new people he didn't recognise, such as a woman with long blue hair and a tiny blond girl. Including the person who looked so similarly to Mistoras._

_Judar descended quietly on his carpet, landing a few feet behind all of them. No one noticed him. This close, he could see just how much everyone had changed._

_They seem to be discussing their victory, laughing and cheering together, saying something like going out to celebrate. Judar frowned a little, watching as they all seemed to be truly happy. That won't do._

_"Hey, Sinbad!" He called, watching as the man who's name he called froze in place before whipping around. "Did you forget about me?" He asked._  
_"Judar?" Sinbad said in disbelief, eyes wide, mouth agape._

 _Ja'far, Masrur, Sharrkan, Drakon and Hinahoho all seemed similarly shocked._  
_"Oh, so you do remember me," he stated as he walked forward, braid swaying behind him as he moved._

 _"Look at you, all grown up," Sinbad said, a soft smile on his lips as Judar stopped a mere few feet away from him. "You must be, what? Sixteen now?"_  
_"That's right," Judar said, placing one hand on his hip as he looked up at the man, seeming almost seductive._

_"What are you doing here, Judar?" Ja'far cut in, and suddenly, Sinbad seemed to be reminded of their past, and glared at him with hate._

_"I could ask you the same. Were you invited to conquer this dungeon?" He asked, tone falsely curious._  
_Ja'far growled at him, scowl contorting his features. "That is none of your business," he stated._

 _Judar tilted his head. "None of my business, really?" He asked._  
_Sharrkan suddenly pulled his sword from it's sheath, pointing it at him. "I'll never forgive you for what you've done to Sindria, to Mistoras! I'll kill you!!" He declared before he charged._

 _"Wait, stop!!!" Sinbad yelled, futily reaching out to stop him._  
_Judar's eyes were wide in shock, barely moving out of the way of Sharrkan's sword, though his cheek still stung, something warm rolling down his cheek._

_Judar stumbled back a bit, he looked just about as shocked as Sharrkan and Sinbad. A strangled sound left Ja'far's throat as Hinahoho, Drakon and the three new people gasped in shock. Masrur seemed stoic as always._

_Judar raised a hand, wiping his thumb across the cut, pulling his hand back, he stared at the crimson of his own blood on his thumb._

_Sharrkan seemed to want to reach out to him, hand halfway reached out towards him, though he hesitated._  
_"You hurt me," Judar said, sounding betrayed._

_Just then, some more of his memories slipped, and it left Judar staring blankly, eyes dulling further as he forgot all about the person in front of him. He didn't know Sharrkan all that well before Al-Thamen took him away from them, thus, he supposes, it made sense for him to forget Sharrkan entirely first out of the group._

_"Judar," Sharrkan said softly, sounding apologetic._  
_Judar was snapped from his blank moment, staring curiously at the man in front of him. Raising one eyebrow, he tilted his head._

 _"Who are you again?" He asked, confused._  
_Sharrkan's eyebrows shot up in surprise at this, glancing in confusion at Sinbad, who seemed just as confused._

 _Judar turned back to the group, seemingly brushing Sharrkan off._  
_"Sinbad!" His eyes lit up at the sight of the man. "What are you doing here?" He asked curiously, yet confused._

 _Sinbad hesitated. "...We just conquered this dungeon."_  
_Judar frowned, angered. "Why? I didn't invite you to conquer this dungeon," he stated angrily._

 _Sinbad smiled, cocky. "Why would I need an invitation to conquer this dungeon from you?" He asked._  
_"Because I raised this dungeon, and I didn't raise it for you!" He shouted as he pulled his wand out._

 _"What?" Sinbad asked as Sharrkan moved away from the raven._  
_"Sinbad, he's a Magi!" Yamuraiha shouted, just as Judar gathered Rukh and shot it at them._

 _"He's a Magi?! Why didn't I know?!" Sinbad yelled as they all ran._  
_"I don't know, I didn't even know you knew this child!" Yamuraiha yelled._  
_"Obviously he didn't deem it necessary to tell us!" Hinahoho shouted._

 _Sinbad grunted as he stopped and turned, pulling Baal's metal vessel from it's sheath, allowing his full body Djinn equip to envelop his body._  
_"Borg!!" Yamuraiha shouted, one of Judar's Magoi shots slamming into it and passing over and around her harmlessly._

 _"You're a magician," Judar stated, teeth gritted._  
_The sound of thunder rumbling had Judar look at Sinbad. "Baal," he stated, though he looked betrayed. "You'd really attack me, Sinbad?" He asked softly._

 _"Only if you continue attacking us, Judar," Sinbad said, gripping his sword a little tighter._  
_"What's wrong with your Rukh?" Yamuraiha cut in suddenly, eyes narrowed at Judar._

 _He looked at her, expression blank._  
_"What do you mean, Yamuraiha?" Ja'far asked, speaking up for the first time in a while._  
_"His Rukh, it's pitch black," she stated, a deep frown on her brows._

 _Sinbad's eyebrows shot up, looking back at Judar, expression sad._  
_Judar sighed, tucking his wand away as he looked at the group, expression torn. "I miss you," he said, making direct eye contact with Sinbad._

_Sinbad opened his mouth to answer, but closed it slowly, with a soft 'clack' as Judar clenched his eyes shut, tears falling down his cheeks as he grit his teeth, clenched his fists and turned around, walking away._

_Sinbad watched him go, not once calling out to stop him, call for him to come back, or even run after him, not even when Judar looked back at them, with longing burning in his eyes._

_He watched Judar climb on his magic carpet and fly away. Watched as one of the most important things left, and slipped right out of his fingers. And he let him._

_  
_

* * *

__

_  
_

Judar grunted in pain, not only from the pain the memory had caused him, but because he slammed face first into the ground. Slowly, he got to his feet, face twisted in confusion at the unfamiliar place.

Confused, Judar started exploring, only to bump into a strange plant looking thing. Shocked, he attempted to attack it with his magic, only to realise that it didn't work. He tried running, but not even that seemed to work, he was slower than Kougyoku.

It wrapped it's tentacles or roots or whatever around him, moving him to it's mouth in order to eat him. He shouted, squirming, and wriggling, trying to free himself, when at the last moment, he was cut free.

Judar landed ungracefully on the ground, staring in wonder at his hero, only for it to turn to disgust. Whatever it was, it looked like a strange doll.

Judar was amused when he found out that the doll was, in fact, Alibaba. He started spewing things to Flabbybaba that no one wished for him to get back to their world, that no one missed him, and that he was naive.

He said all these things to Flabbybaba, when in reality, it was all meant to be for himself. No one would miss Judar. Alibaba had Aladdin, that Fanalis girl, Sinbad and his eight generals, hell, he even had Hakuryuu, when Judar had no one.

Alibaba seemed to shrug off his words with ease, his expression not even changing once as he declared that he would go back home, even if no one wanted him there.

Judar just couldn't understand why Aladdin would choose someone like Alibaba as his king's candidate, or why Hakuryuu was so charmed by this man. He could see nothing appealing about Alibaba.

After being saved a third time from being eaten alive by Alibaba, Judar decided to value his life more over his dislike towards the guy, and decided to stick close to Alibaba, even if he really hated it.

Despite his feelings of hate and disdain, Judar still followed Alibaba, hating to admit that the other was the strongest of the two currently, and if he wanted to survive, he would have to stick to Alibaba.

  


* * *

  


_Judar's eyes were squinted into tiny slits as he glared at their newest arrival. He was another child, timid and seemingly rather annoying. Masrur seemed a little taken by the other, but Judar disliked him almost instantly._

_Not only that, but Serendine had conquered one of his dungeons, and now, Sinbad seemed different. If Judar had to guess, it would seem like something was bothering the older male, and despite him still feeling angered towards Sinbad for leaving him behind, Judar decided to at least go and greet the large group._

_"Are you alright, Sinbad?" Hinahoho asked softly._  
_Sinbad had been frowning a lot ever since the happenings in Heliohapt, and at the moment, his head was tilted slightly to the ground as they walked, a faraway look in his eyes._

 _Sinbad looked up at the large male, smiling a small, yet soft and reassuring smile. "Yes, I just feel a little tired, is all," he answered._  
_"Oh, I'm sure you'll feel better in just a moment," Ja'far commented to his other side._

 _Sinbad turned his head to look at the smaller with curiosity, while Hinahoho merely looked from over his head down at the former assassin._  
_"Why's that?" Sinbad asked, curiosity clear in his voice as he rose one of his brows in question._

 _Ja'far smiled mysteriously. "Look who came to greet us," he stated, gesturing in front of them._  
_Confused, the two older males turned their attention to their front, eyes instantly landing on the small child standing and waiting for them._

_He wore dark clothes, which helped him stand out against the pure white of the Sindria Trading Company building. Sinbad squinted a moment, before his eyes brightened, expression cheering up as he grinned widely._

_"Oh, there's another child here?" He could hear Sharrkan ask Masrur, who merely nodded silently in confirmation._  
_Sinbad grinned widely as he raised his right arm to swing it in a wide arch as a form of a wave to the boy waiting for them._

 _"You think he's still mad at you, Sin?" Hinahoho asked._  
_"About what?" Sinbad asked, distracted._  
_"About you leaving him behind, he wasn't very happy with you when we left," Hinahoho said, teasingly._

_Sinbad stilled, expression morphing into shock at this information, before he let his arm fall back to his side limply, his expression back to being saddened and deep in thought. Hinahoho chuckled at him as Ja'far shook his head and sighed harshly._

_"Hey, Judar!! Were you waiting for us?" Hinahoho asked as they neared._  
_"I saw you coming down the road and thought I might greet you," he answered nonchalantly._

_Judar could practically feel the question mark appear above his head as both Ja'far and Hinahoho gestured to Sinbad rather wildly, Mistoras stood there to the side with an awkward smile on his lips._

_Judar climbed down the steps, having realised what the two meant when he noticed Sinbad hadn't even raised his head to look at him. Judar moved to stand before him, and hugged the older male's legs, looking up into Sinbad's golden eyes with wide, doe like red eyes, the picture of pure innocence._

_"Did you have a safe trip, Sinbad?" He asked cutely, knowing that this would absolutely work on the older male._  
_Sinbad could hardly contain the squeal that wanted to leave his throat at the sight as he bent forward and gathered the child in his arms._

 _"I did!" Sinbad answered as he rubbed one of his cheeks against Judar's, eyes closed as he smiled in delight._  
_Sinbad started to chatter with Judar as he carried him back into the building, completely unaware of everyone's stares on him as he went._

_Sinbad collapsed in his office chair, exhausted. Left hand rubbing at his forehead, his right resting partially on Judar thigh and hip. The tiny Magi merely stared openly at Sinbad._

_"You seem upset," Judar observed._  
_Sinbad opened his eyes, gold connecting with red, as he let his left hand drop down on the child's other leg._  
_"I'm just tired, it was a long trip," Sinbad stated softly._

 _Judar frowned at him, not believing a word._  
_Sinbad smiled at the clear look of distrust on the Magi's face, one hand reaching up to drag through the short, thick locks of black hair hanging around Judar's face._

 _"I can't hide things from you, can I?" He asked as his eyes took in the smaller's features._  
_"Of course not," Judar said with a firm shake of his head._

 _Sinbad chuckled as he pulled Judar closer, gsntly forcing the smaller's head against his chest as he relaxed completely in his office chair._  
_"Well, I wasn't lying earlier, I really am tired," Sinbad spoke softly._

 _Judar turned his head on the elder's chest, so that he could listen to Sinbad's heartbeat._  
_"You won't tell me?" Judar asked, though it sounded more like a statement._

 _Sinbad tugged Judar's hair free from it's braid so that he could run his fingers through the long strands instead._  
_"I don't want to bother you with such trivial matters, at least, not yet. I want you to stay the way you are now, forever. I don't wish for you to really change at all," Sinbad admitted, his lips pressed against the top of Judar's head, his confession spoken into the younger's hair._

_Judar sat back, looking at Sinbad with both his eyebrows raised in shock at the elder's admission, though he knew it was Sinbad's way of changing the subject, it didn't make the words any less true._

_Sinbad smiled at him briefly before leaning forward and placing a gentle, yet firm kiss on the younger's lips. Just a mere peck, nothing more, nothing less, and yet, that simple gesture held a thousand feelings and emotions behind it._

_It made Judar blink at Sinbad, lips tingling slightly as the man guided him back to laying on his chest. Judar smiled a moment later, eyes closing as Sinbad continued to comb his fingers through the Magi's hair._

_There, they sat in silence, Judar never once stopped smiling, even when Sinbad's hand stilled and he fell asleep, Judar kept smiling, eyes close, content as his chest was filled a feeling of deep love._

_  
_

* * *

__

_  
_

Sinbad sat in a chair in his office in Sindria, head held in his hands as he took deep, calming breaths, mind filled with various memories of the Magi he had lost, fingers tingling with the memory and desire of running them through those silky locks on multiple occasions.

His lips burned with the desire to feel the Magi's lips on them, tongue craving the taste of every inch of skin the Magi had to offer, body desiring to feel the Magi's own fitted against his.

Sinbad wasn't sure where all of these sudden desires and cravings came from, but what he did know, was that he needed it. He needed to fulfil these desires. He needed Judar.

Sinbad took a deep, shuddering breath, thoughts plagued by a hundred different 'what if's.'  
What if he had chosen to believe Judar, instead of falling for Al-Thamen’s lies.

What would it have been like when Judar grown up with him, instead of in the Kou Empire? How different would thing's have been?

Sinbad didn't want to think of all the possibilities, if he had just done things a little differently. At least Mistoras and the other's were okay now. Sinbad smiled briefly at the recent memory of their missing comrades reuniting with the eight generals.

Granted, Yamuraiha and Pisti didn't know all of them, but they were still very happy at the sight of long lost friends. Spartos had started crying like a child at the sight of his brother.

Kikiriku and his twin sister were absolutely delighted to be reunited with their mother, Rurumu, though the family was hit with grief at the news that Rurumu had lost their fourth child.

She had birthed the child, a boy, mere days after Judar was forced into his agreement with Al-Thamen. She was barely able to hold him before members of Al-Thamen came and took the baby away.

They had all fought with all their might to take the child back, but Rurumu had screamed at them to stop once the members of Al-Thamen threatened to kill Judar.

It was a difficult choice, one she chose to make nevertheless. It was either they continue for her new-born and have Judar killed and possibly lose the baby as well, or they let them take the baby with the possibility of finding him later, and have Judar still live.

It was a difficult choice, one that left her broken and crying on the cold floor of their cell, but one she didn't regret all that much. She knew in her heart, that her and Hinahoho's baby would be alright.

Hinahoho comforted his wife, who had started crying at some point in her story, and told her that he was proud of her. He, too, would rather have both children live than possibly losing one permanently and the other temporarily.

Sinbad vowed to find their missing son, even though his heart was set on finding the missing Magi as well. The two Imuchakk warriors had smiled gratefully at him then.

Currently, everyone was in the dinning area, waiting for some much needed food. Sinbad sighed, deciding that he would join them all, as well. After all, he couldn't find Judar when he busy starving to death.

The food was great, and conversation light as they filled in their missing companions on what had happened over the past fifteen years.

The conversation was just started to dim when Sharrkan stood suddenly, hands slamming down loudly on the wooden table to gain attention, hair hanging in his face.

It was silent as they all turned to look at him in surprise.  
"Sharrkan?" Yamuraiha asked timidly, having never seen the male like this.  
"Are we just going to ignore this?" He asked quietly.

"Ignore what, my friend?" Spartos asked.  
"Ignore the fact that, okay, sure we got most of the old Sindria family back, but it's not the same. We're incomplete without him!" Sharrkan rose his head as he spoke, anger and guilt clearly shown in his eyes.

Sinbad stared in shock.  
"Him? Whom?" Yamuraiha asked in confusion.  
"I agree," Masrur cut in before Sharrkan could start a verbal fight with Yamuraiha. "This family, it's short one member,"

Yamuraiha and Pisti continued to look around in confusion.  
"I think it's about time we discuss how we're going to find Judar," Drakon stated suddenly.

"Drakon? I thought you didn't like Judar?" Sinbad said in surprise.  
"While that may have been true in the past, I only dislike the Judar of the Kou Empire, I never disliked the Judar of Sindria," the man stated, looking at everyone sat at the table.

"He was an innocent child, corrupted by the darkness of this world. To some extent, I believe we are partly responsible, for not believing one of our own, and instead choosing to believe the words of our enemies. We gave up on him once before, and I will not let that happen again. I have learned from my past mistakes," Drakon said, gaze turning to look sadly at the table.

"You're right, Drakon!" Hinahoho stated, though he had a smile on his lips. "This time, we won't stop looking for him, we won't stop believing in him, and most of all, we won't stop until our family is whole, and it just isn't whole without Judar!"

"I'll drink to that!" Sharrkan said after a moment of silence as they all raised their glasses, though Pisti and Yamuraiha did so in confusion, and drank from their cups in celebration of their soon to be whole family.  


  


* * *

  


_Sinbad stared at the peaceful sleeping child next to him. Judar's face was completely relaxed, fully comfortable at sleeping beside the older male._

_Sinbad smiled suddenly at the, admittedly, cute child. Judar had a habit of falling asleep in his big brother's jacket, claiming he got cold easily at night, even if most of the time he slept beside Sinbad._

_Said man sighed softly as he turned on his back, staring at the ceiling. He was unable to fall asleep, mind too busy thinking of the future and what it held. Currently, he was in the process of buying an Island from Parthevia._

_That island would soon be the first Sindria. Sinbad smiled at the images he conjured in his mind. He could hardly wait, his dream would be fulfilled soon._

_"Sinbad?" Judar's sleepy voice cut through his thoughts._  
_Sinbad turned his head to look at the child, who was rubbing at one of his eyes with a small fist._

 _"Hhm?" He hummed._  
_"Why aren't you sleeping?" Judar asked, his sentence disturbed by a yawn._  
_"I can't fall asleep, my mind is too busy thinking," Sinbad admitted._

 _"Do you want to talk about it?" Judar asked, looking at Sinbad with curious eyes._  
_Sinbad chuckled softly. "Sorry, but that's grown-up stuff,"_  
_Judar pouted at him, which only made Sinbad laugh harder._

_Judar frowned angrily as he sat up. Sinbad stopped laughing, briefly fearing that the child would leave, though he smiled soon after when Judar stood on the bed, wobbled over towards him, and collapsed on his naked chest._

_"Play with my hair," Judar instructed._  
_"Why?" Sinbad asked with a brief laugh._  
_Judar tilted his head to look up at him. "You always fall asleep when you play with my hair," the Magi stated._

_Sinbad's eyebrows rose in surprise, before a gentle smile settled on his lips as he undid the braid and started to run his fingers through the long strands._

_At one point, Sinbad planted a kiss to the top of Judar's head, well aware that the tiny boy was fast asleep. Not too long after, he fell asleep, too, Judar's long hair falling over his bare chest, covering his skin like a blanket._

_  
_

* * *

__

_  
_

Two whole years they spent getting back to their world. Two whole years Judar was forced to endure Flabbybaba's presence. At first, it was sort of okay, not the best traveling partner, but the whole thing could have been worse.

And it did get worse. At first, Judar thought that his memories have left him be, until he collapsed from an onslaught of them. Alibaba told him he was unconscious for close to three days.

With a lot of pressing, Judar was finally revealed what had been happening to him. Alibaba offered no commentary or words of comfort, just stayed silent, and Judar wasn't sure if he should be happy or not.

By the time they got back to their world, Judar woke up in a strange cabin, surrounded by darkness. He could feel his Magoi had returned, though he still felt exhausted.

He stood, and explored the cabin. He nearly screamed at the sight of a very malnourished body on a bed. Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was Alibaba. Disturbed, Judar started for the door, heart pounding at the discovery, a terrible ache in his head had him slowing and stumbling about the small house.

Just as he reached the door, it swung open. There, in the doorway, surrounded by the light given off by a lantern, stood Yunan. Judar stared blankly at the blond man, who looked surprised upon seeing him, before he smiled and greeted Judar.

Judar opened his mouth to ask what the hell is wrong with Yunan, when another ache in his head had him collapsing to his knees, head gripped tightly in his hands as he cried out.

Yunan was by his side in seconds, asking him what was wrong, a concerned look in his eyes. Judar attempted to answer, but lost consciousness in the older male's arms.

Judar spent about two weeks like this, in and out of consciousness, head pounding in agony. Though the terrible headaches were usually followed by an onslaught of memories, he received none this time.

He was just stuck in this state of terrible agony, his Rukh going insane whenever he woke up, frantically trying to calm him down, though it did little to help. At times, his headaches were so bad, he would vomit whatever he had in his stomach, which wasn't much.

Yunan stayed by his side, though, holding his hair back, rubbing his back, trying to get him to eat, and forcing him to drink some water so that he doesn't dehydrate. Judar was grateful, in the end.

By the time Judar was well enough to leave, Yunan didn't want him to, asking if he didn't want to stay until Alibaba woke up. Judar didn't want to, and instead, thanked the other Magi for his help, and left.

Over the course of a year, he wreaked havoc, causing trouble, and then went to where he remembered his parents used to live. He spent most of his time at their graves, until Hakuryuu came for him, and took him back to the Kou Empire.

  


* * *

  


Things were different now, three year's later. Alibaba was astonished with how much things have changed while he was gone. He spent majority of his time with Kougyoku, until Aladdin found him.

He was surprised to see his old friend, who had gotten so much taller, and absolutely delighted to see Morgiana. It was also awkward at first, seeing Hakuryuu again, after what happened the last time they saw each other, but after they apologized, they rekindled their friendship.

That night, they went to celebrate their reunion, eating, drinking and talking again like old times. After much thought and gathering all the courage he could, Alibaba asked Morgiana to marry him.

She smiled at him, and said yes. It felt as though his heart wanted to pound right out of his chest from a mixture of relief, nerves and excitement, and suddenly, they were celebrating for an entirely different reason.

Through all this though, Alibaba could stop the nagging feeling though, in the back of his mind constantly wondering where that one person was. He was truly worried about Judar.

"We have to go see Sinbad," Alibaba stated, arms crossed, fingers pinching his chin, as he stood in an empty room in the Kou empire's palace.  
"I don't know if he'd want to see me," Aladdin admitted softly.  
Alibaba turned to look at him in confusion. "Why wouldn't he?"

It was silent for a moment.  
"Sinbad sort of...blames Aladdin for Judar's disappearance," Hakuryuu mumbled softly while glancing at the floor of the Kou's palace.

Kougyoku frowned sadly as she, too, shifted her gaze to the floor. Morgiana stood beside Alibaba silently, hands behind her back as she looked at Alibaba's reaction from the corner of her eye.

"Huh?" Alibaba blurted dumbly.  
Aladdin stared in shame at the floor, too, biting softly on his lower lip. "You see, three years ago, in the same fight you...died, I had to send Judar away. It was the only way I could stop him. Eberyone just assumed he's dead, and Sinbad didn't take the news very well," he informed quietly.

Alibaba stared at his blue haired friend dumbly for a moment longer. "Judar isn't dead," he stated.  
Everyone's eyes snapped up to meet his, Aladdin's lips parted in shock at the news.  
"What?" Aladdin gasped.

"Yeah, he came back with me, he's been around for about a year now. Yunan said he left about two weeks after we got back," Alibaba said, rubbing the back of his neck with a sheepish smile.

Aladdin continued to stare at him in disbelief for a moment before a relieved laugh bubbled up his chest.  
"That's good," he said softly after he finished laughing.  
"Well, let's go see Sinbad,"

  


* * *

  


After they greeted Hakuryuu, who decided to leave in search of Judar, Alibaba, Morgiana and Aladdin left, first going to Heliohapt in order to announce Alibaba and Morgiana's marriage.

Yamuraiha burst into tears upon seeing Aladdin, though Sharrkan and Masrur greeted them calmly. Sharrkan threw an arm around Alibaba's shoulders, congratulating him on his marriage.

Alibaba told him he should get married, too. Masrur then shoved Yamuraiha and Sharrkan together, watching as  she looked up into the King of Heliohapt's eyes, asking if he were getting married, to which Sharrkan said that the two of them could.

Alibaba chuckled as Sharrkan started shouting at them as they left.  
"On to our last stop then," Alibaba said, briefly shaking his shoulders in order to relax his tense shoulders.

"Right." Aladdin nodded, a look of determination on his face. "We'll go see uncle Sinbad,"  
Alibaba briefly placed a hand on his clearly very nervous friend's shoulder, squeezing gently, and then walking forward, leading the way.  


  


* * *

  


  


Upon entering the Sindria company and seeing Sinbad, the man turned to them, a small smile on his lips as he admitted defeat. Aladdin was clearly very happy, as well as Morgiana and Alibaba.

Sinbad then congratulated Alibaba as well, telling him that they should hold a banquet in celebration. Alibaba thanked him, though he could still see a lingering sadness in the older male's eyes.

Just before they left, Alibaba turned sharply to Sinbad and Ja'far, a bright smile on his lips.  
"You guys needn't worry!" He said brightly. "Judar's alive and back, Hakuryuu actually went looking for him!!" He grinned brightly.

Sinbad's features melted into shock, body frozen at the news.  
Ja'far stepped forward, an urgent loom on his face. "Wait, you're saying Judar's back?? He's here?? He's okay?" He asked urgently.

"Yup! He's been around for about a year, once we find him, I'll be sure to send him your way," Alibaba said reassuringly. "You must be really worried about him," he stated softly, a soft smile on his face as he gazed at Sinbad.

"That'd be great!" Ja'far said enthusiastically, turning to Sinbad with a bright smile. "We'll get to see him again soon, Sin! This is wonderful!"

A small smile tugged at the elder male's lips, and stayed there as he greeted the trio and watched as they left. However, Sinbad couldn't help the feelings of disbelief and doubt  inside his heart. It was all too good to be true, and he would only believe the news once he held Judar in his arms where he belonged. Safe, warm and alive.  


  


* * *

  


Alibaba smiled joyously as he wrote out his wedding invitations vigorously. Kougyoku and Hakuryuu were chatting behind him Aladdin had gone to meet with Yunan.

"I'm done, Alibaba," Morgiana called.  
Alibaba looked up, eyes widening as a grin stretched over his lips.  
"It's beautiful, Morgiana!! Such beautiful handwriting, as expected of my future bride!" Alibaba stated, hands balled into fists near his chest as he shivered in excitement.

"Such beautiful calligraphy, Morgiana," Hakuryuu complimented as he gazed at the massive wedding invitation.  
"I'll send it to Masrur," Morgiana informed with a smile.  
"Is it an invitation or a threat?" Kougyoku murmured to herself.

"Ugh, what ugly handwriting your has, Alibaba," a familiar voice said to the side.  
Both Alibaba and Kougyoku whipped their heads around.  
"Ju-Ju-" Alibaba heard himself stutter.

"Judar-chan!!" Kougyoku wailed as she ran toward the taller male, who smiled softly at her.  
Alibaba also ran forward, surprise all over his face.  
"Hey, you old hag," Judar said fondly as he placed a hand on Kougyoku's head affectionately.

"Judar, when did you get back?!" Alibaba questioned.  
"Mh?" Judar looked at him. "Yesterday with Hakuryuu," he stated.  
"You didn't check on me?!" Kougyoku yelled.

"Ugh, you're so loud, this is why I don't like you," Judar stated one hand gripping his staff, the other placed on his hip.  
Alibaba stared intensely at Judar, until the darker haired male turned to look at him.

"What is it?" He asked, sounding slightly annoyed.  
"It's just-" Alibaba cut himself off as he lunged forward and grabbed the other in a hug.

Judar went stiff, a shocked sound leaving his throat at the sudden embrace.  
"I'm glad you're okay, I was really worried about you," Alibaba stated, gently squeezing his arms around Judar's middle for emphasis.

The look of shock left Judar's face as he relaxed and smiled, wrapping his arms around Alibaba's upper back amd shoulders.

The two pulled away when Morgiana asked where Hakuryuu found. Judar slapped a hand on his king's mouth once he nearly revealed his true name, quickly changing the subject by asking where Aladdin was.

Judar jumped out the window to relax in the tree nearby while eating peaches as they waited Aladdin's return. A few hours later, Aladdin's voice called that he was back, managing to fly face first into the back of Judar's head.

"J-Judar!!" Aladdin yelled in shock, a light blush dusting nose where he had been hurt. "Judar," he said again, voice sounding a bit more firm now, "How are you? You look different, I should really stop flying like this," he muttered the last part mostly to himself.

Judar leaned in close to his face, a look of curiosity on his face, before turning to look at Hakuryuu.  
"Hey Hakuryuu, who is this? He's talking as if we're friends," he asked.  
"That's Aladdin," Hakuryuu stated.

"Hm, that would explain why I suddenly felt sick," Judar said as Aladdin entered in through the window.  
Judar sighed as he sat back down on the large tree branch he had been relaxing in earlier.

Alibaba seemed tense as he practically bounced in place, grabbing Aladdin's arm once he stepped on the floor.  
"Ah! Alibaba!" He yelled in shock as he was dragged a few feet away, where everyone, minus Judar, huddled in a circle.

"What is wrong with you?" Kougyoku asked, eyes trailing over Alibaba's anxious form.  
"Ugh! How the hell am I supposed to convince Judar to go to Sinbad!!?" Alibaba whisper shouted.

They stared at him strangely for a moment.  
"Just tell him Sinbad wants to see him," Hakuryuu suggested.  
Alibaba gasped rather dramatically. "Are you insane!? With their history, I doubt Judar would go!" Alibaba whisper shouted again, a panicked look on his face.

"Why are you whispering?" Aladdin asked.  
"Because I don't want him to hear us!" He whispered again  
"Hear what?" Judar asked from behind them.

A high pitched scream left Alibaba's throat before he whipped around.  
"Oh, uh, Judar, uhm, we uh," Alibaba trailed off awkwardly.  
Aladdin sighed. "Look, Judar. Sinbad really wants to see you, and we said that once we found you, we'd send you his way. So, would you?" He asked hopefully.

One of Judar's eyebrows were raised in question as he looked at them.  
"Just consider it, Sinbad was really broken about losing you for what seemed like permanently," Hakuryuu interrupted before Judar could refuse.

Judar sighed as he waved his hand moving back to the window and climbed out again.  
"Judar, where are you going?!" Hakuryuu shouted as Judar started to fly away.  
"To have some fun!" Judar called back before he disappeared.

  


* * *

  


"I can barely believe it's been so long," Mistoras said, kneeling down next to a headstone with multiple names on it. "So long since we lost the first Kingdom of Sindria,"

"When did you guys put this here?" Parsine asked as she bent at the waist to look at the headstone.  
"Just after Judar was taken," Sharrkan answered.

Rurumu glanced sadly at the headstone, one of her sides pressed comfortable against her husband as she stared at one particular name.  
"You guys even added Judar's name," Vittel stated, fingers running over the mentioned name.

"Yes, well, at the time, we thought you were all dead. We added Judar's name, though we knew we didn't lose him as permanently as we did all of you, it felt just as final," Ja'far stated.  
"It still does," Sinbad mumbled softly.

A sad silence fell over the large group as they stared at the headstone. Three years of searching for their missing companion and yet it didn't feel as though they were any closer tp having him back, even with the news that Judar was still alive and around here somewhere.

Hinahoho stepped forward, placing a hand on Sinbad's shoulder.  
"Don't worry, Sin, we'll find him," he said, squeezing his shoulder.

Catching the end of their conversation, Judar ended a few feet behind the entire Sindria family. He knew none of them knew he was there as he stared longingly at them.

More than anything, Judar longed to be with them again, be a part of their family once more, like they were back then. But, he was concerned. Would they be able to look passed all his mistakes? All of his flaws? Could he himself truly forgive them, for not believing him, and leaving him at the mercy of Al-Thamen?

But most important of all, could they all really go back to how they were? He was sure that everyone of them were haunted by happened in the past, especially those who were held captive by Al-Thamen. This included himself.

Judar bit his lower lip, hesitating. If he went back to them, he would have to let go of his hatred. A few more seconds of hesitation, Judar stepped forward.

He'd let go of his hatred, if it meant the rest of his future could be filled with happiness. He refused to let people continue to control his life. He would take control, and run after his happiness, grab it tightly, and never let go.

And his happiness was Sinbad and the Sindria family.

"Sinbad!" Judar called out, heart pounding in his chest as he continued to walk forward, towards his happy future.

He could see Sinbad's back and shoulders tense at the sound of his voice. Sinbad turned around slowly, as everyone else made sounds of shock and joy.

"Aladdin said-eugh!" His sentence was cut of by a strange mixture of a groan and choking noise as he was pulled into an extremely tight hug.  
"You're finally back!!" Mistoras yelled into his shoulder.

Judar grunted, sure that his entire face must be red by now, being unable to breathe and all.  
"Mistoras, you're killing him!!" Sharrkan yelled urgently.

"Oh!" Mistoras said, pulling back, hands gripping Judar's shoulders as he nearly collapsed. "Sorry about that, I just got too excited!" He apologized sheepishly.

"Ugh," Judar groaned in discomfort as he rubbed his ribs. "It's okay, I guess,"  
Suddenly, a large hand was in his hair, ruffling the shorter strands and tangling them.  
"Yes, it's good to have you back!" Drakon said as he bent forward slightly to look at Judar in the eyes.

Judar couldn't keep the surprised look off if his face as he was pulled to the left by an arm around his waist.  
"Oh yeah, it's great to have our little Judar back," Sharrkan stated with a wink, his right hand squeezing Judar's right hip.

Judar blushed, but before he could retaliate, and maybe hurt Sharrkan for touching him somewhere he didn't want, he was pulled into another hug.

"I'm so happy to see you again," Serendine whispered into his neck.  
"Right," Judar said quietly, feeling very confused and shocked.

"We're so happy to have you back," Rurumu said with a fond smile, Hinahoho chuckled, grinning as he agreed.  
"It's always a pleasure when one of our children come back," Hinahoho stated as Serendine pulled back with a soft smile and tears in her eyes.

"What?" Judar asked in confusion, eyebrows pulling together.  
"Judar," Sinbad's voice cut through his befuddled thoughts.  
Judar turned around turned around to face the man, whom had a small smile on his lips as he slowly started to spread and open his arms in welcome.

"Welcome home," Sinbad said as the other's cheered around them.  
Judar felt his eyes begin to sting, though closed them as he stepped into Sinbad's arms. Warmth washed over him as Sinbad's familiar arms wrapped around him.

He suddenly felt as if everything that's been wrong had been righted, he felt safe and at home.  
"I missed you so much," Sinbad mumble into his hair, arms tightening around him.

"I missed you, too," Judar mumbled into his neck, his own arms tightening around Sinbad's neck.  
"I'll never let you go again," Sinbad stated, a silent promise.  
A small puff of air passed Judar's lips, a sound of amusement, a quiet chuckle. "You better not,"

  


* * *

  


After their small reunion, they all returned to Sindria, where Drakon, the new King, announced a brilliant banquet was to be held, in celebration of their family being whole again.

As they waited, there was a moment of silence, until suddenly, Ja'far apologized to Judar for doubting him, for not believing him all those times he had stated his innocence.

Soon, everyone else followed, including Sinbad, as they apologised for all their own wrong doings against him. Judar merely brushed them off, but smiled sadly as he started to apologize for all the trouble he'd caused them over the years.

Sharrkan then cheered and stated all was forgiven as he started to drink. Judar merely smiled a small smile. Later, when the banquet started, Hakuryuu, Aladdin, Alibaba, Morgiana and Kougyoku arrived.

"So you guys made up?! This is great!!!" Alibaba cheered as he ran towards the group, a large smile on his face.  
"Yeah," Judar mumbled.

Alibaba suddenly grabbed the Magi, pulling him flush against his body. "So do you think you'll stop being hurt by your memories now??" He asked seriously.

"What?" Sinbad asked, but was ignored.  
"I don't know, but I think so? It makes sense, right?" Judar said, seeming unsure.  
Alibaba nodded, their faces inches apart as they spoke. "Oh yeah, totally! I mean, you guys made up, so It'd make sense for them to stop hurting you,"

"Who's hurting Judar?" Sharrkan asked loudly.  
Alibaba opened his mouth to answer, but all that left his mouth was a grunt as he was violently elbowed in the gut.

"I'll tell you later," Judar stated.  
After that, there was much drinking, eating and dancing. Judar was constantly pulled into dances with many different people, but mostly danced with Sinbad.

Judar hated dancing, but put up with it, mostly. Currently, he was dancing woth Sinbad, quite far away from everyone else. It was nothing extravagant, just some gentls swaying as Judar laid his head on Sinbad's chest, feeling quite exhausted.

"Are you tired?" Sinbad asked, tightening his arms that were wrapped around Judar's waist.  
"Hm," Judar hummed. " 'M not used to so much physical activity,"

Sinbad chuckled, one hand slowly rubbing up and down Judar's side. The younger didn't seem to mind, one of his hands laid against Sinbad's neck, thumb caressing over the skin there.

"There are still some things we need to discuss, things I have to confess," Sinbad said quietly.  
Judar turned his head to look up at Sinbad, noting the guilty expression on Sinbad's face.

"You mean like how you've been working with Gyokuen? Or how you used Kougyoku? Or maybe how you threatened to kill Aladdin? How about that time you refused to help Alibaba?" Judar asked, a thoughtful look on his face.

Judar chuckled lightly at the look of utter shock on Sinbad's face.  
"You knew?" He asked softly.  
"Aladdin and his gang of hooligans told me everything," Judar stated, briefly glancing over at the mentioned group.

Sinbad chuckled. "I should have known," he stated with a small smile.  
"I'm mostly pissed that you've been working with that woman, but the rest, I couldn't care less about," Judar stated, gazing at Sinbad chest instead of his eyes.

"Judar," Sinbad said softly, gently grabbing the Magi's chin with his thumb and forefinger, tilting his head back to look at him. "I swear that I will stop working with Arba, or Gyokuen, whichever name you prefer. I was merely using her to find you, and now that I have, I have no more use for her."

"You're all I've ever wanted these passed years. It may have taken me longer than necessary to realize that, but I finally have, and I would not jeopardize that for someone like her. I want you, and no one else," Sinbad confessed, running his hand through Judar's short hair with a loving expression.

Judar smiled at him, eyes closing as he enjoyed the familiar feeling of Sinbad's fingers combing through his hair, unaware as the elder male leaned in, and connected their lips.

Judar's eyes opened briefly in surprise before closing again, pressing back as Sinbad slowly started to move his lips. Judar followed, their lips moving together, slotting together perfectly.

Sinbad smiled into the kiss before he decided to deepen it, tongue moving to lick at the Magi's soft lips, asking for entrance. Judar granted it, their tongues meeting and exploring each other's mouthes, before pulling back.

Sinbad pressed their foreheads together as he stared lovingly into Judar's eyes, his hand carding through the short black hair once more. Everything was perfect.

  


* * *

  


A few months later, and Judar was currently living with Sinbad in his company. The two had officially started a relationship about a week after their first official kiss, after they talked everything over.

Alibaba and Morgiana got married, to which Judar and Sinbad had both been invited. Judar had complained at first, but then stayed mostly silent during the ceremony, and even gave the happy couple a congratulatory hug at the end.

Sinbad kept his word, and ended whatever relationship he had with Arba, and with the help of Judar, Aladdin, Alibaba, Yunan, Hakuryuu and Sinbad himself, they were finally able to rid her of the world.

Judar's memories didn't bother him as much, once in a while, he would get a terrible ache in his head, but it was rarely so bad that he lost consciousness because of it, and it never really happened when he was around Sinbad, so the dark Magi mostly brushed it off.

That is, until one morning, when he awoke with a terrible headache. Judar groaned in pain, one hand moving to press against his head where the ache seemed to be the worst.

The sound of his discomfort and his movements attracted Sinbad's attention, who was already getting ready for the day. Sinbad frowned in concern as he watched the Magi's features contorting in pain.

Sinbad walked over towards the bed, sitting down near Judar, he bent over and ran his fingers through the Magi's hair.  
"Good morning," he said softly as he planted a gentle kiss against his lover's head.

"Mh, this is not a good morning," Judar grumbled, grumpy.  
Sinbad chuckled softly as he used one hand to gently message the raven's head.

"I don't want you to go in today," Judar mumbled.  
"I can't stay, I have meetings. I'll come back as soon as their done, I promise," Sinbad said softly.

Judar moaned, not liking the news at all.  
"I'll be back as soon as I can," Sinbad stated as he cupped the Magi's cheek and pressed a long, sweet kiss on his lips.

"Get some breakfast once you wake up fully, okay?" Sinbad said, smiling at the grumble he got in response, stood and left the room after one last worried glance back.

Throughout most of the day, Judar's headache continued to build, until he could barely move, much less stand up and walk to the kitchen in order to get breakfast.

This headache was so bad, Judar was reminded of those two weeks he spent in pain with Yunan. Suddenly, Judar found himself wishing Sinbad would just return.

He could feel his head pounding with each beat of his heart, could feel the ache behind his eyes, it even started to ache behind his nose. Judar could only curl up in a ball, clench his eyes shut and hope he fell asleep.

"Judar?" A voice whispered, his shoulder was being shaken, too.  
Judar slowly opened his eyes, groaning in agony at the pounding headache that had only seemed to get worse after he fell asleep.

"Are you alright?" Ja'far asked, a concerned look on his face.  
Judar shook his head very slowly, eyes clenching shut, teeth gritting. This was by far one of the worst headaches he's had.

"Alright, I'll go draw you a bath, sit up while I do that," Ja'far ordered as he turned and briefly left the room.  
Slowly, very slowly, Judar managed to force his body up, moving to the edge of the bed.

He could hear Ja'far talking to someone, problably through one of those strange devices that Sinbad invented.  
"Have you had breakfast yet, Judar?" Ja'far asked, standing near him.  
"No," Judar answered.

He could feel his hair was tangled and standing in every directions, and normally, this would drive him mad, but he let it go this one time.  
"Sinbad's on his way here, said he'd get you something to eat first, maybe it'll maje you feel better," Ja'far said as he moved towards Judar.

"Here, I'll help you to the bath," Ja'far offered as he grabbed one of his arms and pulled it over his shoulder.  
Judar stood, grunting in pain, vision swimming, he swayed on his feet a little

He was sure he would have fallen over by now had it bot been for the strong grip Ja'far had on him.  
"Do you often get headaches like these?" Ja'far asked in concern as they slowly made their way across the room.

"Never ones as bad as this," Judar answered.  
Ja'far turned his head towards, and Judar could very clearly see the worry in his eyes. "You should think of maybe asking Aladdin if he knows what to do? Perhaps he could heal whatever's wrong?" He suggested.

"Hm," Judar hummed, eyes closing in pain again. "I'll think about it,"  
This answer seemed good enough for Ja'far as he turned his head away.  
Judar's eyes flew open as a sudden, terrible, yet familiar pain shot through his head.

Crying out, Judar jerked away from Ja'far, collapsing to his knees, gripping his head, Judar bent forward until his forehead touched the floor.

"Judar!" Ja'far shouted in shock as he fell to his knees, gently touching the Magi's bag.  
Judar was moaning and groaning loudly in pain, eyes clenched shut, fingers digging into his head.

He suddenly fell to the side as very vivid images flashed in his mind, the sudden, stabbing pain intensifying, along whit a stinging, burning pain in his back.

"Oh my god!" Ja'far's voice could barely be heard over his own as he curled up and started to scream.  
He visibly jerked every time he could feel a phantom whip make contact with the skin of his back, causing the stinging, burning pain.

The slashes came in rapid succession, cracking over his skin, the smell of his own blood caused nausea that only he could feel, the sound of whipping causing his ears to ring, something only he could hear.

"Judar!" Sinbad's voice rang in his ears before his eyes rolled into the back of his skull as one last, harsh slash cracked across his skin, a terrible, blood curdling scream tore through his throat before he lost consciousness.

\---

Slowly, Judar felt himself getting pulled back into wakefulness, eyes clenching before blinking open. He was laying on his stomach in bed, a chilly breeze against his back told him that he was without a shirt, and his braid had been pulled to side.

Judar closed his eyes again, snuggling back into the pillows before he opened his eyes again, wondering where Sinbad was.  
"You're awake," Sinbad said, gaining his attention.

Judar turned his head to his other side, eyes resting on Sinbad, who was sat on the bed next to him, reading a book. Sinbad closed the book, put it on the bedside table, and turned to look at him.

"I was worried," Sinbad stated as he reached forward, and pressed his palm against Judar's forehead. "You had a bit of a fever, that's why you're not wearing a shirt," he explained.

"Oh." Judar laid his head back down, relieved once he realised the terrible headache had gone away.  
Sinbad ran his fingers through his short hair, though his eyes seemed distant and sad.

Slowly, Judar pushed himself up, sitting on his legs, facing Sinbad.  
"What's wrong?" He asked, noticing Sinbad's distracted actions.

Sinbad focused on him. "What happened to you?"  
Judar stared at Sinbad, golden eyes were gazing at him in concern, eyebrows furrowed. Judar sighed.  
"I...regained a memory," he answered.

Sinbad's eyebrows raised at this. It wasn't the first he's heard of this, but he was shocked to know that it was so bad.  
"It's the first time I suffered so much pain before and during it. I had terrible headaches like that before, when Alibaba and I came back, but a memory never followed, and usually I lose consciousness when the memory starts, but not this time," Judar explained, seemingly reading Sinbads mind.

Sinbad seemed to hesitate for a moment before he asked his question. "What was the memory?"  
Judar looked into his eyes, before turning his gaze to stare at the sheets. "It was of...when I was punished, after the old guys took me away from you," he answered softly.

Judar could feel the guilt in Sinbad's gaze. "It was the last day of my punishment, and they were whipping me. I could remember the sound, the smell of my own blood, the pain-"  
His words were cut off as Sinbad hugged him.

"I'm sorry," he said softly into Judar's neck, guilt eating away at his heart.  
Judar smiled softly, arms raising, one hugging Sinbad, the other placed on his head. "It's okay, I forgave you a long time ago,"

The two continued to hug until Sinbad pulled back a bit suddenly, a strange look on his face as he guided Judar to lay down on his back, hovering over him.  
"What are you doing?" Judar asked curiously.

"Showing you just how sorry I am," Sinbad stated, one hand supporting his weight as he hovered over Judar, his other hand was slowly sliding up the bare skin of Judar's side.

A sly smirk stretched over Judar lips as he suddenly spread his legs, allowing Sinbad to settle between them as he wrapped his arms around the larger male's neck.  
"As long as you swear to bathe with me afterwards," Judar said, eyelids drooping slightly.

Sinbad smiled at him before he dove forward, capturing the Magi's lips as he rocked their hips together. A sudden breath left Judar at the movement.

Sinbad broke the kiss, lips trailing down the younger's jaw, planting kisses occasionally as he made his way down. Sinbad spent a few minutes kissing, sucking and biting at the sensitive areas on Judar's neck.

Small breaths left Judar at the pleasure he was receiving, eyes following Sinbad as he moved lower to his chest, lips trailing kisses on his pale skin until he reached one of Judar's nipples.

The Magi's breath hitched as Sinbad started licking and sucking his nipple, occasionally nipping at the bud, until it was perky and slightly red from the treatment. Judar moaned softly as Sinbad moved to give his other nipple  the same treatment.

Sinbad trailed his hand down Judar's body while he still sucked on his nipple, teasingly, his fingers brushed over Judars clothed cock. Judar's hips bucked a little, but was mostly distracted by the attantion he was receiving on his chest.

Sinbad suddenly pulled away as he pressed his hand against Judar's slowly hardening cock, golden eyes watching as the Magi closed his eyes, a light blush dusting his cheeks as he groaned softly in pleasure.

Sinbad leaned forward, lips once again slotting against the Magi's as he pulled his hand back, pressing their hips together, and grinding. Judar's sift moans grew in volume as Sinbad continuously rocked their hips together.

Judar was panting by the time Sinbad pulled back to take off his clothes. Still trying to catch his breath, Judar automatically rose his hips once Sinbad's hands tugged at the remainder of his clothes.

Sinbad slid both his hands up Judar's naked thighs, smirking to himself once Judar opened his legs for him. Settling between them, Sinbad took a moment to appreciate the Magi's naked form.

This was far from the first time they had sex, but no matter how many times they'd done this in the past, Judar's beauty never ceases to take his breath away, whether he be naked or clothed.

Sinbad leaned forward again, kissing Judar once on the lips as he pressed his hand against the Magi's flushed cock, curling his fingers around Judar's cock, and started to move his hand up and down.

Judar moaned, long and loud as he gently bit Sinbad's lower lip, pulling a groan from the elder male. Judar moaned again against Sinbad's lips as he moved his hand, wrapping his fingers around Sinbad's girth and started to stroke him in sync with Sinbad's strokes on his own cock.

Sinbad was large, really long and quite thick, as well. Judar shuddered at the thought of Sinbad inside him, gently squeezing the man's cock at the pleasure the thought brought him.

Sinbad moaned into his neck, nipping at the skin briefly before pulling away. He leased the Magi's cock in favour of grabbing the lubricant and spreading it over his fingers.

Once Sinbad settled back between his legs, Judar spread them as far as he could, gently taking both of their cocks in his hands and stroking slowly, almost lazily as Sinbad pressed the first finger knuckle deep into his hole.

Sinbad gave him a moment to adjust before he started to move his finger, thrusting in and out while Judar moaned and continued his lazily stroking on their cocks.

Sinbad soon added a second and third finger, watching as a blush darkened the Magi's pale cheeks. Judar moaned, panting as he moved his hips, riding Sinbad's fingers as pleasure clouded his mind.

"Are you ready?" Sinbad asked as he withdrew his fingers, chuckling at the whine he received.  
Sinbad quickly smeared lubricant on his cock, supressing a moan at the friction before he settled back in between Judar's legs.

"Mhm," Judar hummed, wrapping his arms around Sinbad's shoulders as the man lined himself up.  
Leaning forward, Sinbad quickly forced his arms underneath the Magi in order to hug him.

Sinbad placed a quick kiss to his lover's forehead before he started to press himself in, slowly, but steadily he slid in. Judar moaned, long and loud as Sinbad entered him, panting once the man stilled, fully sheathed inside him.

Judar moved to wrap his legs around Sinbad's waist, gently moving his hips. Both of them moaned in pleasure. Slowly, Sinbad pulled back, before thrusting back in.

"Mmmnnn," Judar moaned, squeezing Sinbad's waist with his legs to encourage him. Pulling back, Sinbad pulled his arms out from under Judar, instead gripping his as he thrust forward again, pulled back,and thrust again, quickly building up the pace to a brutal rhythm.

"Ah! Mmmhhh," Judar continuously moaned, and keened in pleasure. Sinbad caressed one of Judar's hips with his thumb as he continued to thrust, slowly building up their pleasure to climax.

Judar bit his lower lip, eyes closed as he moved one hand to his cock, stroking in time with Sinbad's brutal thrusts. Sinbad leaned forward, placing a hand on Judar's cheek, his thumb caressing the reddened skin.

"Look at me," he ordered lightly.  
Moaning, Judar opened his eyes, red connecting with gold.  
Sinbad leaned forward and kissed Judar, taking one of his hands to stroke Judar's cock as well.

Panting, Judar broke the kiss. Moaning into Sinbad's ear, he wrapped his arms around the man's neck and shoulders, forcing his hips down to meet Sinbad's thrusts.

"AH!" He cried out as Sinbad adjusted and suddenly started to hit his protest. "Harder, Sinbad," he moaned.  
Judar's sounds of pleasure grew in volume as Sinbad started to thrust harder.

"Ah! I-I'm close!" Judar called, biting his lower lip once more.  
"Me two," Sinbad grunted into his ear, speeding up his thrusts.

Judar nearly screamed in pleasure once he came, his inner walls tightening and pulling Sinbad over the edge. Sinbad continued to thrust through their orgasm, planting a long, warm kiss on Judar's lips as he stilled.

Slowly, Sinbad pulled out of Judar and rolled off of him to lay next to his lover. After a few moments of catching their breath, Judar rolled onto his side, and cuddled up to Sinbad.

Smiling, Sinbad started running his fingers through Judar's hair, enjoying the familiar feeling. Sinbad nearly fell asleep when he felt Judar shift to look at him, a pout on his lips.  
"You said you'd take a bath with me," Judar reminded.

"I did," Sinbad stated, sitting up lazily and walking across the room.  
Smiling, Judar sat up as well, patiently waiting for Sinbad to return, knowing from experience that trying to walk so soon after sex with Sinbad was a bad idea.

Judar brightened once he saw Sinbad walk towards him, wrapping his arms around his shoulders as Sinbad picked him up. Smiling, Sinbad placed a kiss against his head.

The water was nice and hot as Sinbad lowered him in. Judar made sure to scoot forward to allow Sinbad to climb in behind him. Once the elder male was settled, Judar made sure his braid was outside the bath tub.

Pulling his knees to his chest, Judar leaned against them, closing his eyes and relaxing. Sinbad watched from his laid back position as Judar's spine became visible as he bent.

He was still trying, discreetly as possible, to get the Magi to gain weight. He was still healthily skinny, but looked a lot better then he did when they first started their relationship.

Sinbad frowned suddenly, just barely noticing a scar on Judar's back. Slowly, Sinbad sat forward, and gently touched the scar. Judar jumped a little at the sudden contact, but relaxed once again.

This close, Sinbad could clearly see multiple scars along his back. They were as pale as the Magi's skin, which made them very hard to see, but now that he had noticed them, it was hard to unsee.

Sinbad gently ran his fingers over the scars, before leaning forward and planting kisses all over the warm skin. Judar hummed, closing his eyes as he enjoyed the feeling.

Suddenly, Judar sat straight, somehow managing to turn around in the tub to face Sinbad. Moving his legs, he sat on Sinbad's lap, legs wrapping around his waist, Judar cupped his cheeks and started to kiss him on his lips.

Sinbad hugged his waist, enjoying the affection as he slowly leaned back and leaned against the tub. Judar pulled back, caressing his cheeks as he stared lovingly into his eyes.

Smiling, Sinbad gently started to knead Judar's buttocks.  
"I love you," Sinbad suddenly confessed.  
Judar's heart skipped a beat as he stilled, eyes widening briefly before he smiled and caressing his cheeks and neck again.

"I love you too,"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun facts about this story:
> 
> 1\. This fic was inspired by two songs; Ed Sheeran's 'Perfect' as well as 'Pieces' by Rob Thomas.
> 
> 2\. The song 'Pieces' was also the inspiration for both of the chapter names, obviously I own neither of these songs.
> 
> 3\. The title of this fic is a lyric from the song 'Shattered' by Trading Yesterday.
> 
> 4\. In the first planning of this fic, it would have followed the Manga's story more, and at the end, I actually intended for both Judar and Sinbad to die.
> 
> At the end, Kouen would have held Judar in his arms as he died, and later, Judar would appear in front of them in his Rukh form, smile at them, and suddenly turn into a child where he would then tell Kouen he loved him as he turned, and took a much younger Sinbad's hand, who was also in his Rukh form.
> 
> In the end, I decided against this, as I had major wrighters block and lost all inspiration for this story. I do sort of feel as it were rushed near the end, I'm especially disappointed with the smut scene, but I just really needed to get this out there.
> 
> Thank you for reading this story, I hope you enjoyed it!


End file.
